


Kiss and Snarl

by whynot



Series: Mason and Mae [1]
Category: Fallout 4
Genre: Anal Sex, Dom/sub, Dubious Consent, F/M, Instant Attraction, Light Angst, Lingerie, Nuka World, Oral Sex, Pet Names, Raiders, Rough Sex, Smut, Submission, Vaginal Fingering
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-22
Updated: 2017-04-22
Packaged: 2018-10-20 17:32:51
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 17
Words: 35,932
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10667469
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whynot/pseuds/whynot
Summary: Mae Sullivan, an informant for the Institute, is forced to escape the so-called Utopia and finds herself carried off to Nuka World by Overboss Colter and inducted into the Pack against her will.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> The first chapter is just a bit of backstory. hope you enjoy the fic! :)
> 
> \- Ellie

At the exciting age of 19, Mae wouldn’t mind if she died. Wouldn’t mind if one of the security guards shot her down where she stood, wouldn’t care if a Courser ripped her apart. At least her blood would add a little color to the floor and walls. Splashes and splatters of red on the pristine, soul sucking white. Shocking, violent color that evoked disgust, fear but it was _something._ The only thing that kept her sane were the lines of bright colors assigned to each division and the green of the foliage. But even so, they were emotionless. They were straight lines and unmoving shapes, made for the purpose of direction. Boring, uniform, had been there her whole life. Made her skin feel chalky.

“Mae.”

She whipped her head around from staring down at the textbook before her. “Fucking hell, Conrad, stop sneaking up on me.”

“You’ve been assigned a job,” he informed, taking her hand and tugging to get her standing up. “But you have to sign a couple things first.”

“Like what?”

“Contracts.”

Her dark brows furrowed. “Uh…?”

The corner of his lips twitched in a rare smile. “C’mon, old man wants to see you right away.”

 

* * *

 

Mae kneaded the palm of her hand with her opposite thumb as the elevator took them down. She hadn’t known this one existed - mostly because to even get a glimpse of it you needed the adaptor from a p.i.p device for the door leading into its room. Her own was now clasped to her arm, the band swallowing her wrist and the small glass screen asleep until she woke it with her fingertips. 

The doors slid open after 3 minutes of silence, and she followed Kellogg out to walk down the white corridor, their footsteps echoing off the polished floors. “This can’t be it,” she mumbled, her voice carrying even with her quiet tone.

“It’s not,” he answered. “Got a few more corridors.”

The second one was lined with green leafy plants, and doors patterned its walls. “Where do they lead?”

“Not your concern.”

Third corridor - black lines, giving her a sense of direction. More doors that weren’t her concern.

Fourth corridor - a breath-stuttering surprise. The usual headache-inducing fluorescent bulbs were gone, replaced by warm purple halogen bulbs that lined the edges of the ceiling, splashing onto the walls in a burst of color that faded out half way. The fifth hallway was the same, though the plants were back and the room was dimmer.

“They thought the gradual change would prepare everyone better,” Kellogg explained.

“For what?” Mae asked as they reached another elevator. It resembled the one at the center of the Institute. Kellogg didn’t answer her, just herded her in and punched the button.

Exactly one minute later, Mae had been counting, she felt every thread of melancholy and emptiness unravel and fly out of her. All around them in a dark void was nearly a city of servers and databases - dots, bursts and blurs of neon blues and purples, lines of warm orange echoing off steel supports, and thin suspended walkways with plexiglass floors. Black and grey wires spilled like waterfalls from the machinery, the lights reflecting off of them.

“Welcome to the Network,” Kellogg said, the elevator coming to a stop. The door swung open and humid air hit them in a heady wave. “Go find your superior. He should be here somewhere.”

“Somewhere,” Mae repeated, scanning over the vast room. If it could even be called a room - rooms didn’t hold towers.

“Better start searching.” He gave her a gentle shove out of the elevator, then punched the button and shot her a wink as he was lifted away. Mae took in the sight for another few seconds before pulling her arms out of the sleeves of her new uniform - a white jumpsuit - and shoved it to her hips, tying the sleeves around her waist and leaving her torso covered only by her cropped undershirt.

She took a few calm steps, but excitement overwhelmed her so quickly. The neons were shimmering and changing every second, the towering machines seemed to sway the higher they reached and the fans whirred at top speed. Nothing was staying the same, nothing was boring and it was beautiful. She sprinted down the first catwalk, the glowing lights rushing passed her, and she breathed out a laugh.

Not only beauty, there was power here. This dark and glimmering city was made of the inner workings of the Institute. The glasslike screens of the terminals held every file, every project, every bit of information that any terminal in the Institute contained. In a way this was a hive mind, and she was now part of the select few that had control over it. She was one of the people that had the means to wreak havoc, to bathe the entire utopia in darkness with a few switches, could destroy years of progress by pulling out a few wires.

But there was still restriction. She was no longer watched by the unblinking eyes of security cameras, but she was still monitored. She wasn’t the only one in here, and now her superior stood in front of her.

“Mae,” he spoke in greeting. “Welcome to your first day on the job.”

She smiled. Genuinely smiled. “Happy to be here.”

“I should imagine so. Follow me, and I’ll show you what you’ll be doing. Your work will mostly consist of repairing and tinkering. Place as large as this, there’s always something going wrong. It’s up to us to make sure it remains under control.”

“How do we reach the parts too far from the catwalks?”

“Climb.”

“Climb?”

He stopped walking and she did the same, brows furrowing as he gestured to a ladder of orange lines that trailed up one of the server towers. Then he stepped onto the railing and leapt, hands catching the orange and feet perching. He jumped back like it was nothing, giving another gesture that said _ta-da_. “Now let’s get you a tool belt.”

 

 

**3 YEARS LATER**

 

 

“Mae.”

She jerked back from the terminal, slapping a hand over her heart when Kellogg’s face came into view. “It’s just you,” she sighed.

“Lucky for you,” he responded. “But they’ve noticed, Mae. People have seen you messing around on the terminals when you aren’t supposed to. So you’re being reassigned.”

“What? No—“

“Calm down, I think you’ll actually like this. I put in a good word for you, told the old man I’ve been teaching you a couple things in the training rooms. He’s making you an informant. You’ll get to go topside.”

A slow smile broke across her face. “Really?”

He nodded, a quick jerk of his head. “Only catch is that you’ll no longer have clearance to come down here.”

Her smile snapped back to a frown and her brows furrowed. “But this is the only cool place in the entire facility.”

“Don’t go pouting, okay? Way I see it, you’re gettin’ off easy. Now c’mon, he wants me to escort you out.”

Her jaw clenched, and she glanced back at the terminal. “Right now?”

“‘Fraid so.”

She hesitated, then with a sigh unplugged the adaptor on her p.i.p and closed the file she was reading through, then powered the terminal down. “Let’s go.” They were both silent for a moment as they walked, then Kellogg spoke again.

“So your hacking skills are pretty solid now, huh.”

“I guess. They could be better. There’s still some files I’m not able to get into. Yet.”

“You gotta be careful, Mae.”

“I always am.”

“Clearly not, since you’ve been spotted.”

“It’s dark in here, okay? Lots of shadows for people to lurk in.”

He sighed. “Sure. Anyway, I’m gonna split when we get back up there, but I’ll meet you in your room. Got some things for you.”

 

 

Mae was reapplying her rich mauve lipstick when Kellogg appeared in the mirror. She whipped around, her warm black hair fanning out with the quick movement. “How are you so fucking quiet?”

“Taught you how, didn’t I? Here.”

She took the baggy jacket from him, along with the sleek modified pistol. “Woah, a step up from usual ordinance, huh? Thanks.” She shrugged the jacket on over her white cropped tank top and tucked the pistol into the waistband of her standardized jumpsuit. “Father gave me a Courser Chip, so I’m good to go.”

Kellogg shifted on his feet. “You, uh… want me to come with ya? First time out there and everything.”

“I’ll be fine.”

“Got the assignment? The location coordinated?”

“Mhm.” She put her hair up in a messy bun.

“All right. Good luck, and don't die.”

Shooting him a wink, she activated the Chip and was relayed out.

 

  
Mae, after a very quick decision process, loved being topside. She had been taken to a rooftop of one of the skyscraper buildings, assuring that no one would see her or the blue light of the relay. The sun, the god’s honest _sun_ , was setting, casting the sky in warm colors and it knocked the breath from her lungs. Dark clouds hovered above the horizon, over the ruined city buildings that seemed like artwork. Dark and falling apart and… different. Nothing was the same color, there were no white walls or lab coats or creepy synths. Just a decaying beauty and a chilling wind curving the lapels of her jacket.

Mae pulled her hood up and turned to search the roof - finding a collapsed section, she jumped down and made her way through the decrepit building.

 

  
The task was easy - check on McDonough and make sure he’s doing his job. The synthetic man acted nervous, so Mae ended their meeting quickly and hacked into his terminal. The mayor had kept something from her - someone was accusing him of being a synth. Which was… not good. She kept her discovery from the mayor and left his office, then Diamond City itself.

 

* * *

 

She hadn’t planned on ending up in Goodneighbor, or heading down to the Third Rail to order a drink. And she certainly hadn't intended to instigate a bar fight with a particularly large drifter, punching him hard across the face. But here she was.

After being manhandled and badmouthed for a few moments, hauled up and shoved away every time she went at him, she managed to hook him in the jaw, a proud grin flashing on her face when it staggered him. He wiped at his mouth and met her eyes, and a pang hit her in the chest. His gaze held heat, ferocious and dirty, and he grabbed her arm to drag her across the floor and up the stairs. Mae stayed silent as he led her through the town, her heart pounding. She glanced up a the sky and a slow, heavy breath escaped her. It was a black void dotted with stars, some clustered like clouds and it was so much better than the Institute’s simulated bullshit.

The stranger slapped a few bottle caps on the check-in counter, not even sparing the clerk a glance before he took Mae upstairs to a vacant room. As soon as the door slammed closed he pinned her to it and their mouths met. He tasted like blood and booze and as his tongue slid passed her willing lips she felt consumed, delirious and she she clung to his jacket, sighing into his mouth. He bit down on her bottom lip as he yanked her jumpsuit down, and when he stepped back Mae stripped off her jacket and top.

“Sweet fuckin'…” he trailed off, eyes roaming over her body and the mesh lingerie that she had Liam make for her. “Who the fuck are you?”

She only giggled as he pulled her back to him, carrying her the short distance to the bed and dropping her down onto the dirty mattress. While he yanked off his clothes she unclasped her bra, then welcomed him eagerly between her legs, kissing him and taking in the filth that she had been told every wastelander was made of. His cock glided against her folds and she moaned lewdly, letting herself go, but then his hand wrapped around her neck and a panic shot off inside her.

“Hey, hey, easy,” he soothed when she started to push him off. And for some reason she listened, giving him the benefit of the doubt. “I ain’t gonna hurt you, okay? You ever do this before?”

She shook her head, and his brows furrowed. “Like… ever?”

Again, she shook her head. No one in the Institute ever caught her eye, and if whoever she chose as a partner was shit in bed she’d have to see him every day. There was no avoiding anyone down there.

The look he gave her was too kind, too gentle and considerate. So she kneed him in the side and reflexively he squeezed his hand around her throat, and she gave an overemphasized moan.

The man breathed out a laugh and jerked his head in a crooked nod. “All right.”

She heard her underwear rip the moment before it was torn completely off her. “Hey—!” Her head whipped back against the mattress when he powered down on her neck, and then he was inside her, inch by agonizing inch of him sliding slowly until he bottomed out. He didn’t go easy on her, started his pace off slow and deep and the pain was so fucking good, mixing with the pleasure of his cock hitting that sweet spot inside her. His hand flexed on her throat and she screwed her eyes shut, soaking everything in.

She roamed her hands over his dirt smeared body, feeling his muscles move under his skin, hot and thrumming. It was exhilarating, having him powering over her but at the same time he was adoring her, his tight grip warm and affectionate, thrusts tuned to make sure she was feeling just as much as he was and he placed lingering kisses on her neck.

“Harder,” she huffed out.

“Specifics, angel. Want me to fuck you faster or choke you tighter?”

Hearing it spoken was just as hot as having it done to her. Her eyes fluttered open, meeting his. “Both.”

A wicked smile, and he did as she said. She trembled beneath him, pleasure intensified by the restriction and tears pricked her eyes, blurring the red glow outside the window in her peripheral view. The moment was downright blissful and it made her whimper, her hands soothing over the scratches she carved into his shoulder blades.

“Goddamn, you’re sweet,” the man breathed against her lips. “Fuck, baby…”

Mae savored every second of every minute until she was coming hard around him, and he loosened his grip on her throat to let her take in a desperate breath as the waves of pleasure washed through her.

He straightened up, tugging her hips with him, and fucked her through it. “Fucking dammit,” he chuckled. “So fucking…” He draped himself over her and kissed her. “Gonna come, sweetheart.”

“On me,” she panted, and her cheeks flushed at her own words, at the sudden need for it. “On me. Fuck, _please_.”

A breathy chuckle. “Shit, you’re…” He pulled out of her and straightened up, staring down at her with hooded eyes as he gave himself a few strokes to release. Mae bit her bottom lip as he came on her stomach and breasts. A full body shiver wracked her and the man slumped down beside her.

“How was that for your first time,” he asked, and a giggle bubbled up from her throat.

“Can say it’s the best I’ve had so far.”

He huffed out a chuckle. “Well if you’re stickin’ around we can go again. If you want.”

She opened her mouth to answer, but the first word turned into a squeak of surprise when a deep clap and rumble went off in the sky.

“Woah, hey,” the man soothed when she suddenly jolted. “S’okay, it’s just thunder.”

“Right,” she breathed, then cleared her throat. “Just surprised me…” She got off the bed and pried the window open, sticking her head out to stare up at the late night sky. Drops of rain hit her skin for the first time and she smiled.

“Lookin’ good, doll!”

She jerked her head down and saw a drifter staring up at her with a grin. The man in the bed stood up and draped her jacket over her. “Keep walkin’, man,” he called down, a cigarette between his fingers.

Mae slipped her arms through the sleeves and sat down on the window sill, swinging her legs over so they dangled out of the building.

“Careful, angel. Don’t wanna fall.”

“Yeah, yeah.” She folded the jacket over her body, thankful that it was so oversized. The humid air rose from the streets below but the rain brought a chill to her body. “I like the rain.” She could feel her companion staring at her, so she turned to him, seeing a relaxed but serious expression on his face. “Something wrong?”

“Nah,” he muttered. “You’re just all kinds of beautiful. Gettin’ my fill while I can.”

She swallowed hard. No one’s ever really told her that before - Liam, sure, and maybe a couple of awkward compliments from the eggheads, but they weren’t… like this. “Can I spend the rest of the night with you?”

He smiled. “Yeah, angel.”

Another love discovered. Pet names.

The man took a long drag from his cigarette before flicking it out of the window. “Wanna try riding me, see how you like it?”

Her eyes fluttered closed and she bit her lip.

A clap of thunder, and with a grin she climbed back into the room to leap onto the bed, capturing the man’s chuckle with a kiss.

 

  
**4 YEARS LATER**

 

  
Mae’s steps were silent as she walked among the servers, the familiarity settling comfortably in her chest. As much as she loved the Commonwealth, she had missed this place. Brushing her fingertips over a terminal screen, the digital lights came alive and she went to work.

After about an hour of soaking up years of information and secrets from every devision in the Institute, she found a file with a strangely high security setup. Even for her it was difficult to break into. But she prevailed, and what she found made her stomach turn - a project known only to the devision heads. A massive line of synths they had been working on for the past 4 years that were frightening similar to a military force, and a detailed plan on releasing them into the Commonwealth, taking control of everything and anything of interest, or destroying 'threats'. Diamond City, Goodneighbor, Railroad HQ and safehouses, Minutemen, Gunner and Brotherhood territories.

Mae had tolerated the Institute’s grip on the Commonwealth because they stuck to the shadows, they were careful. She even looked passed the synthetic birds with security camera eyes that flew everywhere with no one ever the wiser. But this was going too far.

She noted the location of the synths, then powered the terminal down and hurried out.

 

  
Mae’s heart hammered against her ribcage as she stuffed her pack, throwing in with a selection of clothes and underwear, more accurately called lingerie, a shampoo bottle and soap bottle, toothpaste and her toothbrush, a couple tubes of lipstick, then rations and water from her refrigerator.

_It’ll look suspicious if I go striding around with a stuffed pack on. Better leave it here then rush back._

Her first stop was secret ordinance - she had found it years ago from an entry in one of the terminals. She grabbed two of the nuclear explosives and snuck out, then made her way back to the Network and snuck into a hidden door, the threshold leading to a corridor she hadn't known existed. At the end of it was the locked door of the chamber that held the military synths. She hacked into it, the careful process taking around five minutes, and went inside.

The room was a contrast to the rest of the Network - white walls, light grey floor and standard lighting. The space was almost unbelievable, as large as an aircraft hangar and housing for six hundred highly advanced and armored synths. Deactivated now, in need of a few tweaks, but near completion.

Mae took in a slow breath, then placed the nuclear bombs - one to the center right of the room, the other to left and directly across. She set the timer for 10 minutes and sprinted for the door.

 

  
Kellogg was waiting in her quarters, her pack in his hand. “Goin’ somewhere?” he asked.

“Conrad,” she sighed. “I don’t have time—“

“Make time. What did you do?”

She closed the door behind her. “Okay, I snuck into the Network because I missed it, and I found one of their projects. A fucking _army_ of synths that they were planning to use to seize control of the Commonwealth. As in, complete control.”

Kellogg shifted his weight, glancing away. “Shit. Didn’t think they’d go that far.”

“So I planted two nukes in the chamber they’re held in that'll detonate in about 2 minutes.”

“Fucking hell, Mae.”

“I know, I know. But I couldn’t let them go through with it.”

“This isn’t gonna stop them, Mae, the persistent fuckers’ll just start over.”

“Then in another 4 years you sneak me back in and I do this all over again. I have to leave, you know that, right? They’ll know it was me. I tried to erase my p.i.p track but their system was too good.”

Kellogg raked his fingers over his scalp. “Fuck… all right, here. I’ll find you as soon as the smoke clears and restock you with the rest of your weapons, okay?“

“Thanks—“

A faint explosion, and some of the lights in the Institute blinked off, followed by an alarm. Mae shrugged her pack on, frowning at Kellogg. “I closed the door, I thought it would be enough to save the machinery nearby.”

“You thought a fucking _door_ would withstand two nuclear blasts?”

“It was a heavy door!” A burst of warbled feedback came from her p.i.p, and she swiped through the screens to the relay. “Shit, they already scrambled the coordinates.”

“You can end up anywhere near the Commonwealth,” Kellogg mumbled, voicing her worry.

“ _Attention Security and all available Coursers_ ,” Father’s voice announced on the intercom, barely containing his anger. _“Begin an immediate search to apprehend Mae Sullivan and bring her to the holding cell.”_

“That was way too fast, there’s no way they found out it was me yet.”

“He’s probably taking a guess. Out of everyone, you’re the one most likely to do this. I gotta get outta here, and so do you. This room is gonna be surrounded by Coursers in about 5 seconds.”

“Right.” She shrugged on her jacket, then her pack. “Thanks, Connie. I’ll see you later.”

“Good luck.”

A flash of blue light, and she was gone.

 

  
Mae found herself in a desert expanse.

_Of course. Of fucking course._

She checked her p.i.p and her connection to the relay had already been severed. She was on her own now. So she removed the Courser chip from her device and ground it into the dirt to avoid being tracked, then set off for God knows where.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's Mae's board if you wanna check it out:
> 
> https://www.pinterest.com/elliebriann/fo4-mae-sullivan/
> 
> If you wanna comment on this fic but can't/don't wanna use the comments section here you can reach me at wildwasteland.tumblr :) I have a Mae tag on there, too.


	2. Chapter 2

**4 DAYS LATER**

  
Mae didn’t feel her grip loosen, but she heard her pistol clatter to the ground. She took a couple of steps forward, eyes locked on the neon dots of light against the clouded sky like they were a beacon towards salvation. But even the chance of help couldn’t get her further than a few suctioned steps in the muddy soil.

It seemed to happen in slow motion. The glowing red and orange specks left blurred trails heading into the clouds as she fell, and before she knew it she was lying on the ground, one side of her face sunken in mud while the other was cooled by the steady rain, washing the blood from her skin. Her dazed eyes locked on two dead bodies a few feet away, one with a hole seared through their head and the other through their throat.

Thunder rumbled above, and she allowed her eyelids to slip closed. Part of her was glad she’d die with rain pouring down on her.

_Went out fighting._

Before drifting into unconsciousness, she could have sworn she heard footsteps splashing towards her and the grind of metal.

 

* * *

 

Mason sat up straighter in his throne, watching his men scatter as Colter stomped towards him with a woman tossed over his shoulder.

“Overboss,” he greeted, voice low. “What’s goin’ on?”

“Few of yours got themselves killed, right?” he responded. “Brought you a new zoo member.”

“Care to expand on that?”

“I watched this little lady take down over a dozen patrollers, all of ‘em from each gang. Was a fuckin’ force of nature, this one.”

“You just watched _your_ guys get plowed down by some waster?”

“Hey, if they couldn’t defend themselves against one enemy, they’re no use to me. Got somewhere I can put ‘er?”

“… Yeah. Backstage.” He stood up and led Colter into the building to a vacant room the Pack used for members recovering from severe injuries - all three territories had one. “There.”

Colter shrugged the woman off and let her fall limply onto the bed. She landed with her limbs akimbo, her back arched from the pack she wore. “Doesn’t she look like a drowned cat or somethin’? Thought she’d be perfect for your rabble.”

Mason stepped up to Colter’s side and stared down at the new addition. Black hair soaked, strands plastered to her mud-smeared face and neck. She took shallow breaths between purple lips, showing a peak of brilliant white teeth. Her white cropped tank top was soaked with rain and tainted by blood, and the entire front of it was soiled by mud. Her white jumpsuit was shoved down to her waist with the sleeves tied around her hips, and attached to her wrist by a thick strap was a cracked screen, a white light flickering now and again.

“She looks pretty fucked up, Boss,” Mason said, knowing he was pointing out the obvious. Whatever she had suffered seemed to be healed, but she was filthy. And that was coming from the leader of the Pack.

“You shoulda seen ‘er before I took her to the clinic. Was damn near death. Still a looker, though. Have ‘er report to Fizztop when she’s up for it. Oh, and she gives ya trouble when you tell ‘er the situation, don’t give ‘er a choice. She’s gonna be one of us whether she likes it or not.”

“Yessir.” He tried to hide his derisiveness from his voice. He kept still until Colter left, then lifted the woman up and removed her pack to set it on the floor beside the bed before putting her limbs in a more comfortable position.

The instinct to take care of his own flared, even with someone so new. So he found the cleanest rag he could find and dunked it in water, then wrung it out and gently cleaned the mud and blood from her. When he swiped the cloth over her bare ribcage the woman jolted awake with a gasp of pain.

“Woah, easy,” Mason soothed, “It’s okay. You ain’t in danger or nothin’.”

“I…” Whiskey-colored eyes locked with his, and he sucked in a subtle breath. “Woah. Big guy.” Her voice was husky and warm, passing her lips like smoke from an expensive cigar. “You proportionate?”

He cocked a brow at the sudden and blatant question, but his response came without much thought. “Could find out for yourself, kitten.”

“Mmm,” she bit her bottom lip and let it slip from between her teeth, then rolled her head heavily to the side. “Later. I don’t think I…” Her eyes fluttered closed and a sigh escaped her. “Where am I?”

“You’re in my territory.”

“Should I be worried?”

“Not if you behave.”

She huffed out a laugh, her face twisting in pain from it. “No fun. I think I… think I’m gonna sleep… a little…”

A smile tugged at Mason’s lips, and he took a step back. “Sure. Get some rest.”

 

* * *

 

Mae woke up slowly, keeping her eyes closed as her senses returned. Then with a deep breath two twinges of pain hit her torso, and she huffed through clenched teeth. She lifted her arm to check her p.i.p device, finding the screen dark and cracked. _No way on knowing what exactly’s wrong, then. Well…_

She prodded gently at the spots of pain, inspecting the ribs underneath the bruised skin.  _Doesn’t feel too bad. They’re probably just fractured._

Gingerly she slid her legs off the bed and attempted to stand up without bending her torso. A wave of dizziness hit her and she stumbled against the nightstand, then sat down on it with her body awkwardly angled. When her vision steadied she looked around the room, finally bothering to wonder where she was. The big guy from earlier told her that it was ‘his territory’, but where was 'his territory'? How did she get here, and why was she here in the first place?

The room she was put in was large and mostly empty, save for a few tables with chems, bloodpacks and stims scattered on them. Multi colored LED lights were strung across the ceiling and wrapped around a couple of mannequins. Animal-themed helmets and masks were tossed in a corner, blood spattered and mud smeared.

Mae’s eyes stopped at the opposite corner and she sighed in relief at the shower head. She felt disgusting, her hair stuck in clumps from dried mud and her shirt crusted by blood. She pushed up from the nightstand and hooked her foot through the shoulder of her pack to lift it to her hand, then slowly walked towards the corner. She peeled off her clothes and turned the pipe valve, squeaking when freezing water spurted from the shower head.

After a few moments of hoping it would warm up, Mae sighed and accepted the icy cleanup - she was thankful that there was even a functioning shower at all. Hot water was a luxury the Wasteland seldom offered.

Mae watched the blood and dirt swirl down the drain for a moment before taking soap and hair cleanser out of her pack, using no more than necessary to get the job done. She had to make the products last until Kellogg found her. And that was only if he got out of her quarters before it was surrounded.

_It’s only been a few days. Shouldn’t worry. Yet._

 

* * *

 

Mason entered Backstage and made his way to the recovery room, having made a habit out of the last couple of days to check on their newest member. He rounded the concrete pillar to find her near the shower, dressed in white underwear made of flawless rip-free lace, save for the low cut cotton center. Nothing Mason’s ever seen before, but it definitely worked for him. 

And so did every fucking inch of her. Wasn’t a wasteland broad, couldn’t be. Her skin wasn’t weathered or ruddy, wasn’t marred by a single scar. Her hair had a healthy shine and looked resilient, her eyes were clear, lips plump and smooth, and teeth brilliantly white. She was small and lean with perfect thighs that looked fucking _powerful_ , and her breasts were held perfectly by her white bra, taut nipples just barely visible through the thick lace.

“Oh. You.”

Her voice snapped him out of his trance, and he nodded dumbly. “Yeah. Me.”

“Uh…” She glanced down at her body, “everything else I had is dirty. Do you have any clothes I could use?”

Mentally he shook his head clear. _You’re grown man, stop gawkin’ like a fuckin’ teenager._ “Over there. Should be somethin’ clean. Well, clean-ish.”

“Thanks.” She took a step towards the dressers he pointed to and stumbled a bit. “Woah. Still dizzy.”

Mason noted the two dark bruises on her torso. “How are ya feelin’?”

“Not great, but better. So can you tell me where I am and how I got here?”

Mason leaned against a stone pillar and folded his arms over his chest, eyes glued to the woman’s perky ass as she rooted through the drawers. _Guess she ain’t the modest type_. “You’re in Nuka World. It’s an old theme park run by three Raider gangs.”

“And why am I here?”

“Our boss brought you in after he watched you take down some of our guys.”

“Why didn’t he kill me for it?”

“Saw your potential I guess. So now you’re a part of my crew - the Pack.”

She breathed out a laugh and turned around, forgetting about her search for clothes. “Thanks, but no thanks.”

“You ain’t got a choice. Boss’s orders.”

“Screw your boss. You can’t keep me here.”

She wore angry well, too. “Actually, we can. This place is like a fuckin’ fortress, no way out without runnin’ into our guys. And Colter’s already made an announcement about you. No one’s gonna let you leave.”

She stepped closer to him. “So what, I’m just gonna be a slave, doin’ what you asshats say?”

“No, the slaves wear collars. But we can always get you one if you’re into that.” He closed the space between them and towered over her, putting his hand to her neck with his trigger finger and thumb against her jawline. He felt her pulse under his palm, strong and fast. “Fit you with a real nice one, too. Would you like that, kitten?”

Her body swayed in the slightest way, and obsidian swallowed the whiskey of her irises as her eyelids fluttered.

_Ain’t that interesting._

Her mood changed in almost an instant, anger glinting in her eyes. She shoved his chest and Mason stayed put while she stumbled back with a cry of pain, her back hitting the dresser.

“Christ,” the Alpha mumbled, grabbing her arm to steady her. “Look, this fuckin’ sucks for you. I get it, okay? I do. And I ain’t thrilled about havin’ someone who killed some of my guys suddenly join up without my approval. But we ain’t got a choice. So you can either keep bitching about it and stay miserable, or you can embrace it.” She glared at him, tried to look all tough in her fancy underwear while she was shaking from the chill on her skin.

“Fine,” she said finally, turning back around to take out purple shorts and a faded tank top. Stupid choices for someone who was cold, but they seemed to be the cleanest pieces in there. She bent down to put the shorts on but bolted right back up with a gasp of pain.

Mason rolled his eyes. “Give ‘em here. I’ll help you.”

“I can dress myself, I’m not a kid.”

“No, you ain’t a kid, you’re a woman who can’t fuckin’ manage to bend down ‘cause of a couple bruises. Now give me the damn shorts.” She hesitated before doing as he said, and he bent down in front of her.

“They’re not just bruises,” she grumbled, stepping into one of the leg holes. “My ribs are fractured.”

He spared her a glance, then stood up while pulling the shorts with him. Just to be an annoying shit he kept pulling up until she was lifted onto the tips of her toes, and she smacked his hands away.

“All right, I got it from here.”

He backed away. “Meet me outside when you’re done - we got a lot to discuss.”


	3. Chapter 3

Mae stepped out of Backstage, tapping a finger against her lips to make sure her lipstick had dried. Happy to see it come away without any purple, she stuffed her hands in the pockets of the Nuka-World jacket she had shrugged on and walked. Eyes were on her immediately, and she tugged the hood over her head, covering the messy bun she had pulled her damp hair into. She was used to a couple of stares when she was out in the Wasteland, but these were predatory. They were sizing her up and it stuffed her chest with unease.

It was overcast and drizzling, the rain stirring up the farm smell coming from the cages. The amphitheater wasn’t really her style, creepy mannequins and slaves and all, but the fairy lights were a pleasant touch. 

She rounded the cage match ring and approached Mason’s throne. The man was a big fucker, no doubt worthy of his position. Towering height, broad shoulders, massive biceps, muscled chest that looked sculpted under his tank top, and sturdy waist and thighs. And he looked, for lack of a better term, well groomed. Trimmed and styled facial hair, thick faded lines shaved on the sides of his head, decent teeth, face paint neatly done. He even seemed to have a little less dirt on him than the others in the Pack. A little.

“Have a seat, kitten,” he ordered, nodding to the chair next to him, and fuck if his voice wasn’t the type she’d love to have near her ear while being fucked senseless.

She tried to ignore what the throaty, thrumming sound did to her and moved to do as he said. One of the dogs nearby growled at her, teeth bared and head low. A tough looking mutt, some kind of Shepard dog, if Mae was remembering correctly from old world books. Black with tufts of brown fur, big pointed ears, the fur on them much shorter than the rest of his surprisingly healthy coat. The height of his back reached her hip. 

It could take her down in seconds and rip her throat to shreds.

So Mae cocked her lips in a crooked snarl and growled back, her tongue vibrating at the back of her throat, and the mongrel backed down to allow her the chair. It wasn’t from fear, his tail didn’t tuck and his ears remained up, but he gave a quiet, curious whine.

Mae settled down carefully, her ass at the edge of the seat and her torso reclined to get as much pressure off her ribs as possible.

“Huh,” Mason mumbled, watching the dog sit by her feet, another one trotting over to inspect Mae. This one female, smaller with short white hair, but stockier with a meaner mug.

“What,” Mae responded, already starting to feel admittedly comfortable in the overstuffed armchair. She allowed the female to sniff her hand and wrist.

“You got the alpha and his girl sittin' at your feet in seconds.”

She studied the canines. They did seem a step above the others prowling around, both of them larger than the rest. Mae scratched the male behind his ear and smiled, scrunching her nose a bit. “Just gotta show ‘em who’s boss.”

“Easy there. Don’t you go forgettin’ who that is.”

“Colter?”

“He’s the Overboss, sure, but this zoo does what I tell ‘em. Name’s Mason, Alpha of the Pack.”

She dug her heel into the ground - she hadn’t been able to put her boots back on, so she was going barefoot for now. “I’m Mae.”

“Where you from, Mae.” It wasn’t phrased like a question.

“Why’s it matter?”

“Doesn’t. But you ain’t a Wastelander. Can’t be.”

“What makes you say that?”

“You’re kiddin’ right?”

She guessed she could see where he was coming from. “Like you said, doesn’t matter. All you need to know is that I’m not from here.”

He stared at her for a moment. “… All right. We’ll leave it there for now.”

She heard the stress on _for now_. She was going to tell him eventually. “So who’re the other gangs?”

“Well, you got the Operators - pompous bunch who’ll cut your throat as soon as they get what they want outta you. Then there’s the Disciples, bunch of ladies with a thing for blood and knives. No one knows what the fuck those crazy bitches want. There’s something wrong with them. And you can’t trust someone who ain’t willin’ to show you their face.”

Mae matched the descriptions with the Raiders she’d gone toe to toe with. The Operators must have been the ones with slick suits and sleek guns, and the Disciples had to be the ones who wore those creepy metal masks who tried to fill her with stab wounds. She already figured out the colorful ones were members of the Pack. “And what’s the Pack’s deal?”

“We do whatever we want, and whatever it takes. And we’re fiercely loyal.”

Again she heeled the ground. “And Colter?” She sidelong glanced at Mason to see him rub at his chin, scratching over stubble. “Have some opinions on the big boss, do you?”

“Look, Colter’s definitely Overboss. Not a man you wanna mess with.”

“But…?”

“ _But_ , you ain’t gotta worry your pretty little head about it. Or, maybe you do. He asked for me to send you to ‘im.”

She sighed. “I’m only a part of this for a few minutes and I’m already in trouble with the big boss.”

“You say that like you were plannin’ for it to happen anyway.”

“Not planning, but it’s bound to happen.” She stood up, wincing at the pain that was already getting less intense. “I better go now, then. Where’s he holed up?”

“Hold on there, kitten. You ain’t well enough to go traipsing around Nuka World just yet.”

“I’m fine, I took…” She glanced away. “I have a few heavy duty chems in my pack. My ribs are healing up as we speak.”

His brows furrowed, but he didn’t ask questions. “Look, just stay in the Amphitheater until tomorrow, okay? That’s an order.”

“Yes sir.” The response was automatic, practically programmed into her.

Mason cocked a brow. “Well doesn’t that just roll right off your tongue. You ain’t gotta call me that. Just do what I tell you and respect me. All you gotta do.”

“I’ll do what you say, but only because it’s obvious I don’t have a choice. But you’ll get my respect when you earn it. Am I free to go?”

Again, a look of confusion twisted his expression. “… Yeah. Make yourself at home. And you can stay a couple more nights in the recovery room, but after that you’re sleepin’ in the bunk like everyone else.”

 

  
The first person to approach her was one of the biggest guys in the amphitheater. Golden skin, thick and messy dark brown hair and red face paint.

“Hey baby,” he greeted, moving to get behind her, but Mae moved with him and they circled slowly like two wolves about to leap at each other.

A laugh bubbled up from Mae’s throat. “You call every girl here that?”

He grinned, flashing sharp canine teeth. “Nah, they’d rip my throat out.”

“What makes you think I won’t?”

“You look like the kinda girl that _likes_ pet names.”

She tried to hold a threatening gaze, but then her shoulders slumped. “Fuck. You’re right.”

The man laughed and extended his hand. “I’m called Shorty.”

She cocked a brow, taking his hand in a firm grip. “Ironic name. I’m Mae.”

“Well Mae, if you need anything from here on out you can come to me.”

Now both of her eyebrows shot up. “Just like that, huh?”

“I always listen to my gut, and I got a feelin’ I’m gonna like you. And you bein’ new here, you’re gonna need a friend.”

“Surprisingly nice of you.”

“You’re one of us now, girl. I look out for my own. Plus you’re like fuckin’ _crazy_ hot, so I’m also hopin’ this gets me a few points with you.”

Mae laughed. “Well whatever your motives, I appreciate it.”

 

* * *

 

The newest Pack member had more going on than Mason expected. He had been starting to suspect she was just a pampered vaultie, but there was no Pip Boy, no vault suit, and just the way she walked suggested she knew her way around out here. Plus, no vault dweller would be able to fight the way she supposedly does. 

But she wasn’t from out there, no fucking way she could be. It looked like she was kept so perfect, like a pinup girl from before the War.

Then there was her way of obedience. She seemed willful, maybe she really was, but there were hints that she’d been bossed around before, and by someone she listened to. _Yes sir_ came out of her too easily, almost mechanical. She had been stubborn on the respect aspect, showed defiance in her eyes, but had asked permission to leave. She knew how to act towards authority, how to make them happy.

He watched her talk with Shorty, hands stuffed in her pockets and hood up against the rain. She had gone right to the center of the camp - that wasn’t what Mason had expected. He thought she’d hurry on back to recovery and hide.

Mae laughed, eyes glinting. She looked too fucking sweet for the Pack. When it came to anyone who wasn’t part of their zoo, they were the meanest sons of bitches around. They bared their teeth and opened throats, and Mae didn’t even look like she scratched.

He watched as she moved on to someone else - H. At least that’s what Mason knew him as. The man said something that made Mae cock a brow, then he lifted his hand to grip her chin, thumb brushing over her bottom lip.

For some reason, that pissed Mason off something royal. Ain’t no one allowed to go touching her but him, and he hadn’t even fuckin’ touched her yet.

Yet. The word rang in his mind, like he was so fucking sure.

Mae parted her lips for H to slide his thumb passed, and a moment later those perfect teeth clamped down, and H jerked his hand away with a growl of pain. He shouted at her, called her a bitch and threw his arm back to hook her in the jaw. But Mae was quick in dodging - she bent forward, expression twisting in pain, then kneed the Pack member in his gut. A laugh bubbled up from her throat as her hood slid off her head from the momentum.

Okay, so maybe he didn’t give her enough credit.

Another Pack member came up behind her, but somehow she managed to avoid his punch too, moving sideways and spinning to knee him in his side before shoving him back with her foot. It staggered her and again she winced in pain.

Shorty came around from behind her and put his hand on her shoulder, leaning down to speak into her ear. Her body swayed with his as he advanced, backing her away from the two men she had downed. Mae pulled back to meet his eyes and he spoke again, this time getting a nod in response. Then he put his hand on the small of her back and led her towards Backstage.

_Well, looks like they became fast fuckin’ friends._

He’d let the little fight go. There were disputes among Pack members all the time, and as long as no one ended up dead they were resolved just fine.

And by taking down two of his guys in seconds showed the others that messing her should be considered twice.

 

* * *

 

Mae’s head was starting to hurt from her brows being knitted together for so long, but she had to concentrate. There was no fixing the screen of her p.i.p device, but she could at least get it working again. So she stayed crosslegged on the table with tools and components scattered next to her while Shorty mixed a new batch of face paint for her.

“I don’t know why you can’t just wear what we’ve got,” he said, trying to get the right color of fluorescent purple that she requested.

“Because I don’t like them,” she responded simply, not bothering to take her eyes off her p.i.p. “I appreciate you going through the trouble, Shorty.”

“I know, princess.”

“Do you?”

“It doesn’t take that long of talkin’ to ya to know that you’re a sweet girl. Woulda added that you might be a little too sweet, but kickin’ ass out there and laughing after you did it proved otherwise.” He brought the face paint jar over to her. “This good? Please tell me it’s good.”

She gave him a smile. “It’s perfect.”

“Good. Stay still.” He gripped her jaw and used a thin tipped brush to apply the paint along her lower eyelids, then the inside of the shells of her ears. “There.”

“How’s it look,” she asked.

“Honey, you could have brahmin shit smeared on your face and you’d still look amazing.”

“That-that’s a very generous compliment. I’m flattered, really.”

He shrugged. “I try.” He slapped the jar into her hand. “Now how about a thank you kiss?”

She narrowed her eyes at him, then gave his cheek a quick peck. “That’s all you’re getting.”

He smiled like an idiot. “Hey, I’ll fuckin’ take it.” He sat next to her and watched with confused interest as she tinkered with her p.i.p.

Then finally, the screen flickered on and a calibrating message popped up before an anatomical silhouette was depicted. Fine lines pointing to two points on her torso threaded into one line and led to a small message beside the figure - _Fractured, severely bruised. Serum 52 currently in effect. Heal time estimation: Calculating..._

“The fuck is that thing?” Shorty grumbled. “It’s all… fancy.”

For a moment, Mae considered confiding in him. He seemed trustworthy enough. Then again, it could all just be an act. “I found it on some dead guy a while back. Don’t know what it is exactly, but it’s useful.”

“Huh…” a worrying moment of silence, then he stood off the table. “C’mon, you should meet the rest of the crew. It’s late, so everyone’s in full swing now.”


	4. Chapter 4

Mason watched her go from member to member with Shorty, the man acting like a shadow.  _Either he wants something from ‘er, or he just really wants to get in ‘er pants._

Mae put her hand on Shorty’s shoulder and spoke a few words before walking off to approach Mason’s throne.

“What can I do for ya, kitten,” he greeted. She stood with her hands respectively behind her back, her posture straight. _Like she was a fuckin’ soldier or somethin’._ “Sit down.”

She did as he said. “Some of your boys said we aren’t using the other parks.”

Mason shifted on his seat. “… Yeah. We were supposed to have the gangs distributed throughout all of Nuka World. But a year’s passed, and here we are.”

“Shorty told me Nuka Town’s overcrowded. The Pack members in here are just the toughest.”

“You sure gathered a lot of information, didn’t you.”

She blinked at him. “Was I not supposed to?”

“You can do whatever the fuck you want, long as you don’t kill any of ours.” Her brows furrowed. “What?”

“Uh, nothing. So why haven’t you guys moved on the other parks?”

“It ain’t smart to go askin’ about that.”

“Sorry.”

He resisted the urge to roll his eyes. “Were you in the Brotherhood or somethin’?”

Her expression crinkled in disgust. “What makes you think that?”

“You’re all proper, respectful to authority, know how to fight, and you got that fancy tech on your arm.”

She slumped back in her chair, arms draped over the sides. “No. No, I wasn’t with the Brotherhood.”

Mason stared at her. _Y’know you’re gonna end up tellin’ me sooner or later._

She shifted awkwardly under his gaze but kept eye contact. “I… I don’t…” She glanced away, but only for a moment. “I don’t think you’d trust me if I told you where I'm really from.”

“I don’t trust you anyway. Not yet.”

A slow smile spread across her face. “Same to you.”

“Smart…” He leaned back and propped his elbow on the armrest nearest to Mae. “You seem to already be pals with Shorty, though.”

“I like ‘im, sure. But I don’t trust him either. You _are_ Raiders after all.”

Mason grinned. “I got news for ya, kitten. So are you.”

Her eyes darted down and she turned her head forward, not saying another word.

Mae stayed there, silent as she watched the zoo go about their business. She was observant, seemed to be cataloguing behavior and routines. Her eyes darted from the ring to the Raiders on the seats, to the ones tending to the cages and the ones using chems. She cocked a brow when two started fucking in the corner. The Alpha mutt settled at her feet while his girl paced around but remained close.

Mason couldn’t help but shake the feeling that he liked having Mae beside his throne. After a few moments he noticed her relax more, pulling her hood down and letting her hair fall to her shoulders in soft waves, the ends curled delicately against her shoulders.

_Ain’t seen anyone this fuckin’ beautiful. Wouldn’t be surprised if this was a dream._

“Do they have names?”

He blinked. “Huh?”

“The Alpha and ‘his girl’. Do they have names?”

“We don’t name the mutts.”

“Okay…” She trailed off, then held out a hand to the alpha, letting him nudge her fingers. “He’s Icarus.” A hand to his girl, the dog bowing her head for an ear scratch. “And she’s… Nova.” She looked at him with a smile. “They’re mine now.”

Mason couldn’t help but breathe out a laugh. “Are they now.”

“Mhm.”

“… All right. Whatever you say, kitten.” She smiled at that and he felt like he’d been hit in the chest with a swatter. “So you talked to my guys, got any thoughts yet?”

She hummed thoughtfully. “… I like the concept you have goin’ on. Do what you want, have fun, kick ass, that kinda stuff. I mean, I’m not sure how well I’ll fit in here, but. Yeah. I like it.”

A bit of a surprise, but a pleasant one. “And you ain’t got a problem with stealing and killin’?”

“What, you think I don’t have experience with both?”

“No offense, sweetheart, but you look like you’ve got experience in nothin’ but sittin' there and lookin’ pretty.”

“Well I know a bit about that, too. Best way to get a man’s attention at a bar."

"Girl like you probably gets free drinks all night long, huh?"

"I don't go to bars for free drinks, big guy." She shot him a sidelong glance, and he rubbed at his smirk with his hand. 

 

Mason let her remain for three hours, his ears pricking whenever she broke the comfortable silence between them with a small detail she had noticed about his territory, a question about his men, or just a random topic that struck her, all the while bonding with her two mutts with gentle head scratches.

With sparing glances he noticed her subconscious habits. She licked her lips when she tried not to smile or laugh, but when she did it eased the tension in Mason's body that he always failed to notice, she knitted her brows together when she was focused, her eyelids fluttered and her shoulders slumped whenever Mason spoke low.

And in some quiet part of his thoughts, he noticed that she calmed his own restless habits. He was always bouncing his knee or drumming his fingers on his throne's cushioned armrest, but for some reason with her there he found himself relaxing. He decided not to think too hard about that.

The entire time he could feel some kind of heavy pull between them, a taut power line, frayed and leaking with electricity. It was bearable most of the time, just a strange heaviness in the air, but a subtle flirt from either one of them and it pulled tighter, a jolting spark going off and Mason had to keep himself from pulling the woman onto his lap and taking her right there.

She went back to recovery around 2am. An hour later Mason spotted the two guys she had taken down a notch, huddled together and glancing in the direction of Backstage. H slapped his friend’s arm, and they disappeared.

Mason grew antsy before even a minute had passed, and he stood up.

 

* * *

 

Mae woke up with a gasp stinging her throat as a hand grabbed both her wrists and held them above her head while a pair of legs pinned her own. At the same time her eyes snapped open to see a man on top of her, leaning sideways to leave her torso exposed. She struggled desperately, but he was too heavy.

“C’mon, little girl. Stay still.”

The voice belonged to a different man. She recognized it and looking to the right she saw the man who introduced himself as ‘H’. He lifted a bat into her view, and she didn’t have time to even make a sound before he swung it down on her stomach.

The air was knocked out of her violently and she wasn’t given any time to recover before the bat came down on her ribcage. Pain shot through her and a cry wrenched from her throat.

“ _Rib fractured,_ ” her p.i.p announced in a soft accented voice. “ _Severity - moderate_.”

_Oh, you’re fuckin’ kidding me._

“Well that ain’t good enough, is it,” H sneered.

“Hold on a second man,” his accomplice mumbled, “let’s have our fun before we fuck her body up, huh?” He tugged her underwear down and—

Both men were yanked back with surprising speed. Mae turned onto her side with a growl of pain, watching Mason throw both of them to the floor.

“Out,” he ordered, his voice sending chills over Mae’s skin. She struggled to stand, then yanked her underwear back up and breezed passed the three of them.

“Where are you goin’,” Mason called.

“I’m leaving.”

“I told you that you can’t leave.”

“I know, but here’s the thing,” she charged through the door. “I don’t give a shit what you told me.”

“The fuck you say to me?” He grabbed her arm and she spun around to knee his gut, but he caught her leg and shoved her down. The ghoulified gorillas in the cage next to her leapt at the bars with aggressive howls, and she flinched. “Don’t even fuckin’ try that with me, sweetheart.” He kicked her legs apart, planting one foot beside her inner thigh while the other stayed hooked on the bend of her opposite leg, keeping her open. The hem of the long baggy sweatshirt she wore for bed rode up, exposed her underwear and had her cheeks flushing with humiliation as the Alpha towered over her. She could practically feel the power and anger radiating off of him, see it in his stance over her.

And some sick, distant part of her mind envisioned him tearing off her underwear and taking her right there in front of the entire Pack, his ferocity thrumming under her her hands, her nails clawing into his shoulder blades as he rutted her like an animal, grunting and snarling and downright feral.

She snapped out of the flashing thought when Icarus and Nova stalked over, heads low and teeth bared as they stopped beside her, protective growls deep in their throats. It eased the fear in her chest, making room for a hint of fondness and appreciation for such loyalty.

But all Mason had to do was shift his weight to make them back down, still beside Mae but Icarus’s hackles down and Nova’s thin tail between her legs.

“You make a move like that on me again, and you’ll get more than your ass handed to you. You do _not_ go against my orders. I tell you to stay here, you don’t go _near_ that goddamn gate. Understand?”

Mae swallowed hard and nodded. She tried to scramble away when he reached down, but he caught the front of her sweatshirt in his fist, hauling her up for her to stand on her feet. Her hand lashed out and she gripped his tank top when the pain from her fractured rib hit her, but she quickly let go.

Shorty stepped out of the crowd that had formed. “C’mere, princess. Let’s get you back to—“

“Don’t coddle her,” Mason cut in, making the Raider stop mid-reach for Mae’s arm. Then he turned to H and his friend, the two watching near the Backstage door. “Your asses are outta here. That shit you pulled doesn’t fly with me.”

“We were gettin’ even, boss,” H countered.

“You wanna get even? You challenge her to her face, you don’t act like fuckin’ cowards and go after her while she’s sleeping.”

“Y’know what? Fine. C’mon little girl. Let’s—“

The two men were down in seconds, sprawled out on the ground with their jaws cracked. Mae got down on her knees beside the one who had held her down and unsheathed the combat knife on his thigh, then yanked down his pants.

“No, no, no, please!” he cried, voice cracking.

“You proved your point, Mae,” Mason intervened. “Let ‘em go.”

“He tried to…” she trailed off, glancing between them. Then she carefully tucked the knife into her shorts and grabbed both of her opponents by their necks, nails digging around their windpipes. “If either of you so much as come near me ever again, I’ll make you _wish_ that I had just killed you tonight.” She leaned down closer to the mounter, hair a dark curtain around her face. “Not even your Alpha will keep you safe from me.”

As soon as she let go they scrambled up, and she nodded to her mutts to chase them out by their heels. Mae held her hand up and Shorty was beside her almost instantly, helping her stand. “Anyone else?!” she announced to the crowd. “Now’s your best chance. My rib’s cracked, I’m vulnerable.”

Shorty gripped her shoulder, a comforting hold she hadn’t expected. The sudden gentleness in a harsh situation had her eyes closing, tears threatening to spill. She walked forward and he let go, letting her breeze passed the crowd and back to her room.

 

* * *

 

“All right, quit standin’ around,” Mason announced, and everyone quickly scattered. He spotted Shorty heading for Backstage.

“Not you. Wanna talk to you.”

He paused, then turned on his heels. “Yeah, boss.”

“You ain’t gettin’ soft, are ya Shorty?” he asked, voice taking a low and menacing tone.

His brows furrowed. “No boss. I just like ‘er is all. Thought she could use a pal in her… particular situation.”

“Uh huh. And you ain’t doin’ this just ‘cause you wanna fuck ‘er?”

“Would it matter?”

“Just curious.”

“I just like ‘er. I don’t have an ulterior motive or nothin’.”

He paused. “… Has she told you anything about where she came from?”

“No, besides her tellin’ me she got that fancy watch off some dead scavver. I don’t believe ‘er, but I figure she’ll tell me the truth when she wants to.”

Mason nodded, then patted his shoulder as he passed him for Backstage.

 

Mae was sitting on her bed with her back to the wall, eyes closed and legs crossed. Her fingers were curled around an empty syringe. “You ain’t a chem user, are ya?” Mason asked, closing the door behind him. The closer he got, he noticed the paint under her eyes was smudged.

She shook her head, eyes remaining closed as she wagged the syringe with her fingers. “Serum 52. Heals cracked and broken bones. The things the Institute can create, huh?”

His brows furrowed in surprise. He wasn’t stupid - he didn’t need her to elaborate. “You’re from the fuckin’ Institute?”

“Grew up there, was an informant on Commonwealth business for the past few years. Real sneaky shit. Few days ago I sabotaged one of their projects and had to book it outta there. They’d put it as ‘going rogue’. So if that bothers you, then you should just kick me out or kill me right now.”

He clenched his jaw. “… You ain’t with ‘em no more?”

She shook her head.

“Do they know where you are?”

“Made sure they didn’t. Never will. I know how they work and how to cover my tracks.”

“Then let’s just… keep this between us, okay?”

She opened her eyes, the irises darkened by shed tears that must have fallen in the few moments she was alone. “You aren’t suspicious?” She scooted further from the wall to drape a leg over the edge of the bed.

“Would’ve been more suspicious if you kept that to yourself longer than you tellin’ me up front. Well… pretty up front.”

She nodded in understanding, breaking eye contact. He could tell she wanted to talk about what just happened, so he waited.

“They…” she mumbled, barely audible. “They tried to…”

“I know, kitten. But they didn’t.”

Again, she nodded, shoulders loosing tension. “… Thanks for… y’know. Stopping them. You didn’t have to do that. But… you did.”

Mason smiled at the begrudging thanks. “I take care of anyone in my Pack.” He reached down and gripped the roots of her hair, tugging so she was looking up at him. “Whether they wanna be a part of it or not.” He loosened his grip and buried his fingers through the dark strands, almost groaning at the softness. Mae’s eyes fluttered closed, and Mason remembered the spark of heat he had seen in them when he was standing over her. The adrenaline and anger fueled desire.

Her head bowed as soon as he pulled away. “Get some sleep, kitten.”

He reached the door, and she spoke up. “Mason?”

The sound of her saying his name almost made his shoulders slump. He turned around and saw the weakness in her eyes, the uncertainty, and a loaded question. But she simply mumbled, “Night.”


	5. Chapter 5

_His hands roamed her body, warm and fucking massive, almost encompassing her waist as he held her still, his cock sliding against her folds._ _“Tell me how much you want me. How fuckin’ bad you want me to fuck you.” He wrapped a hand around her neck, palm against her pulse. “I bet you beg so pretty, kitten.”_

  
Mae was woken up by the ache between her legs, and she rubbed her thighs together, feeling the silken arousal slicking her folds. _Oh for fuck’s sake._

She scrubbed at her face tiredly, then sat up and stripped off her underwear, stuffing it in the smaller bag she used for the clothes she had dirtied, and took out her last clean pair - a dark purple hollow back thong. She cringed, silently yelling at herself for packing it in the first place. This particular article of clothing was not practical for a life out in the wasteland. But damn if it didn’t look great on her.

Deciding it was better than letting dirty pants chafe against her, she slid the thong on and padded over to the clothing drawers, doing a little jive as she rummaged through them. Her search came up empty, everything too dirty for her liking, so she dressed in the clothes she wore yesterday. After fixing up her face paint she bunched her hair up in a messy bun and applied her lipstick, then shrugged on her pack and left Backstage.

 

“Hey baby,” Shorty greeted with a near predatory smile. “Sleep well?”

“Fine,” Mae responded. “Why do you look like you wanna devour me.”

He draped his arm over her shoulders as they walked. “Maybe ‘cause I do? In the best way, of course.”

She nodded graciously. “Of course.”

“Heya Mae,” a woman piped up, leaning against the slave cage. Mae recognized her as Jack - not a sight for sore eyes, if a bit rough-looking. “Got anything planned today?”

“Not a lot. Gotta see Colter later.” Both Shorty and Jack exchanged worried glances. “Oh, boy. That’s not what I wanted to see.”

“You’ll be fine,” Jack assured, drawling out the last word.

“Gotta say, your tone doesn’t sound like you’re brimming with confidence.”

“Sshh, shh, princess,” Shorty whispered, curling his arm up to pat her head as he led her away. “Why don’t you and me walk around Nuka Town before you go? I’ll give you a tour.”

She smiled. “Sounds fun. Let me just go tell Mason.”

“Sure thing. I’ll be by the gate.”

When Mae approached the throne, Mason was speaking with a Pack member.

“Do you need ‘help’ finding your place here?” he asked, tone menacing.

“No… No! I can handle it.”

“There’s plenty of collars in the kennels if you can’t.”

Mae stepped aside to let the man pass her, then stepped up to Mason. She opened her mouth to greet him, but the sun breaking harshly through the clouds distracted her.

“What’s with the face, kitten?” Mason asked, noting her displeased expression. “Ain’t a fan of the sun?”

“Not really. Prefer clouds and rain.” Nova and Icarus trotted up from behind her, and she sat down to pet them both. “How’re my favorite canines doin’.”

“I don’t get it,” Mason said. “They ain’t actin’ dominant towards ya, but they ain’t cowerin’ neither.”

“Well good. I don’t want them to do either.” She took Icarus’s face in her hands and planted a kiss on his muzzle, then did the same to Nova. Lipstick not dry yet, it left a purple lip stain on her white fur.

 

Mae didn’t know exactly how two hours had passed of her sitting at Mason’s side. They just kept pulling each other back into conversations, arguments, strangely comforting bits of silence. Occasionally the Alpha told stupid jokes that made her try so damn hard not to laugh. She only realized how much time had passed when Shorty appeared.

“We still heading out, princess?” he asked.

“Oh, shit,” Mae hissed as stood sat up, gently lifting Icarus’s head off her lap. “Sorry, got distracted.”

“You two goin’ somewhere?” Mason questioned.

“I’m givin’ Mae a tour of Nuka Town before she heads off to see Colter.”

The Alpha’s brows furrowed. “You feelin’ up for that?”

“I feel good as new.”

“… All right. Careful around the other gangs.”

“No worries, I got Shorty with me. See ya, boss.” Shorty draped his arm over her shoulders again, a gesture that she was starting to like, and she clung a hand to the back of his shirt as they walked away.

“Hey, is there any place I can wash my clothes here?” she asked on their way to the gate.

“The Operators got workin’ washing machines, though I have no fuckin’ idea how.”

She sighed in relief. “Perfect.”

 

  
Mae made her way straight to the Parlor with Shorty in tow and, after introducing herself to Mags and William Black, loaded all her dirty clothes into one of their washers and set the pad lock, pocketing the key at Mags’ suggestion. Then they stopped by the market and made a round, Mae buying a Nuka World Jumpsuit and a couple souvenir shirts at the apparel stall. Then Shorty led her around all of Nuka Town, ending the tour at the cafe so they could wait for Mae’s clothes. After they went back to the Parlor for her to switch them into a drying machine, they finally parted so Mae could head to Fizztop Mountain.

Very, very slowly.

 

* * *

 

Colter stood up from tinkering with the leg of an impressive suit of power armor. “Well well, if it isn’t the drowned little pussycat I rescued.”

She held back a sneer, her top lip twitching. “Thanks for that.”

“How are you enjoying Nuka World?”

“It’s been… fine.”

He took his stance in front of her and gripped her chin in his fingers. “You’re even prettier when you’re not half dead and soaked. Thought you might be.”

“Why’d you bring me here?”

“Saw you fight. We could use someone like you.”

“What d’you need good fighters for? It’s not like you guys are doing much. More than half the park is still…” She already regretted saying it, Colter’s eyes practically darkening with anger and his grip on her jaw tightening.

“I’m going to make this simple for you, girl. You’re going to do what I say, and I won’t make your life a living hell. I’m your Overboss now, got it?”

Something in his manner compelled her to accept it. “And what is it you want me to do?”

“I won’t ask much, lovely. Want you to enjoy yourself.” He stepped closer to her. “Long as you don’t try to run away, you and I are golden.”

She tried to shake her head, but he held her still. “Why do you want me here so badly?”

His eyes darted over her face. “… All right, I’ll be honest. You’re a beautiful woman, and I’m a man. A man with needs. All the women here are either too vicious for my liking, or too addicted to chems. don’t want them in my bed anymore. But you…”

She backed away. “Sir—“

“You let me fuck you every now and then, and I’ll leave you be. Let you do whatever the fuck you want. But if you don’t…” He cocked a brow.

Mae screwed her eyes shut. _Well… guess it could be a worse arrangement? Maybe it won’t be so bad._

“Fine. Deal.”

“Excellent.” He grabbed her wrist and immediately hauled her to the bed, tossing her onto it. “Strip down, darling.”

She did as he said, starting with her shorts, and he chuckled.

“Looks like you were expecting this, eh?” He flipped her onto her stomach and pulled down her thong to her knees, then lined himself up.

 _Woah, woah, woah,_ Mae wanted to pipe up, but the will was lost. She wasn't ready for him, but she’d been in this type of situation and she knew how to power through.

The next 4 minutes consisted of Colter ramming into her from behind, his angle definitely not working for Mae and his thrusts far too erratic. When he finally pulled out he came on her lower back and flopped down.

“All right,” he sighed after a few moments. “You can go. Thanks, lovely.”

“Any time, boss,” she sighed, sitting up and wiping his come off her back with the bed sheet.

“What are you doing, you stupid bitch!” he scolded. “The whole reason I came on you was to not get that dirty.”

She stood up and slid her underwear back up before gathering her clothes. “Sorry sir.”

“Remember that for next time.”

“Will do.” She dressed quickly, then left without another word.

 

  
By the time she retrieved her clean clothes and made it back to the Amphitheater, her annoyance had built up.

“Hey kitten, over here,” Mason called. 

“Later,” she responded, turning for Backstage.

“Hey!” He chased after her. “Mae, I’m talkin’ to you.”

“What,” she sighed, jerking around to look at him. “What is it.”

“Jesus,” he grumbled, eyes darting over her expression. “Someone’s in a shitty mood, huh?”

“Well, bad sex can do that to a girl, _boss_.”

Mason cocked a brow and followed her into Backstage. “So the boss-man had you fuck 'im?"

"Yeah, didn’t give me much of a choice. Was either fuck him or make my life hell.” She shoved open the recovery room door, and Mason closed it behind them as she shrugged her pack off. He was quiet for a moment before speaking up.

“Well I can help you out if you want."

A wave of melting heat washed through her and a heavy breath escaped her, but she kept her scowl. “What, you gonna rut into me like an animal and piss me off with even more dissatisfaction?”

He put his hands up in defense, head jerking sideways. “Hey, I was just offerin’ to help. You don’t want it, I’ll back off. Night, kitten.”

“Wait.” She took a few steps towards him, and he looked at her over his shoulder. “Fine. Help me out.” A wolfish grin and he advanced, backing her up towards the table.

“He make you come?” Mason asked lowly, lips to her ear as his fingers hooked on the waist of her shorts.

Her fingers twitched, tempted to touch him but she held her ground. “No.”

His hand slid passed her underwear, and she whimpered at his touch. “Well you’re still wet. That’s something.”

“Isn’t ‘cause of him.”

“Oh? Care to elaborate?”

She bit her lip nervously before answering. “Dreamt about you. Thought of it on the way back from the Parlor.”

That seemed to kick Mason into gear, because he pulled the button of her shorts open and tugged the clothing down. He took a step back and his brows furrowed, then abruptly he grabbed her hips and flipped her around, a strangled groan escaping him. "Fuckin' _kill me_." He crouched down, hands cupping the back of her thighs under has ass. "If this is how the chicks dress in the Institute I might start to like it."

She watched over her shoulder as he caught the waist strap of her thong between his teeth and dragged it down to her thighs. “They don’t. Everyone there is boring.”

“This your form of rebellion?” He used his trigger finger to tug the thong down further.

“Uh-huh.” It was the only answer she could manage as the Alpha licked a trail from her thigh up to her hip. Then he stood up and turned her back around to sit her on the table. He spread her thighs and settled his hips between them, then tapped her chin so she looked up at him.

"Eyes on me, kitten," he told her, and his other hand went between her thighs, fingers gliding along her slit before sliding into her, thumb working at her clit. He spread his fingers inside her, stretched her before angling them just right, starting a rhythmic pace as he repeatedly curled the digits. Mae was whimpering in seconds, a hand lashing out to grip one of the wide shoulder straps of his tank top, twisting it in her fist.

"Been wanting to see you like this from the moment you woke up to see me," he admitted, hand moving from her chin to grip her hair in a fist. Mae's brows were furrowed and her lips parted as she kept his gaze, the intense green of his irises sending a shiver down her spine. Her other hand gripped the table, fingers curled around the edge so her nails dug into the underside. 

"Shit, I..." she whispered, already embarrassingly close to coming. She released his tank top and lowered her hand to grip his forearm to feel the muscles working under his skin.

“You all right, kitten?” he asked cheekily as her legs started to tremble, and fuck she loved it when he called her that.

“I’m...” she breathed, body starting to rock from the force of his quickening fingers. “I’m—fuck, I’m gonna come…”

He chuckled. “Ain’t that the point?”

She whimpered, bucked against his fingers desperately. “ _Mason_.”

“Fuck if that ain’t the most beautiful sound. You there already? C’mon then, kitten. Come for me.”

Mae dug her nails into his arm, fighting to keep her eyes open and on his as her body obeyed him.

“That’s it, sweetheart," Mason thrummed as his fingers fucked her through her orgasm. "Fuck, if this is how hard you come from just a couple fingers, Colter really missed out.”

Mae choked out a laugh, brows twitching when his fingers slid out of her. “What, uh… what about you?” she asked as the Alpha scanned his eyes slowly down her body. One of his brows jumped at the bikini-style trim she had, but he didn’t mention it.

“This wasn’t about me,” he told her. “I did this to help you out.” He must’ve noticed her expression change, because he quickly added, “It ain’t ‘cause I don’t want you. ‘Cause fuck, I do. Want you so fuckin’ badly. But I’m the Alpha. You’d need to submit to me. And I think you’re too stubborn for that.”

“And what, you’re too proud to drop the Alpha act for a while?”

“It ain’t an act. It’s who I am.”

She thought for a moment. “… I can always get someone else to do the job. Shorty, for example.”

His eyes glinted. “You can fuck whoever you want, kitten. But there ain’t no one out there but me who can fuck you the way you need it.”

“Yeah? Well if I remember correctly, I’ve had some men that did pretty fan-fuckin’-tastic.”

“Then just imagine what I could do.”

Fuck, she wanted him. He was everything she loved - big, tough, handsome and a bit cocky. But he was still different from the men she’s had. Those men she _chose_ to be dominated by. Wasn’t expected to submit or ordered to. But Mason saw it as his right, and that pissed her off.

Mae’s eyes darted over his chest, and after a bit of hesitation she roamed her hands over the fabric of his tank top, untucking it from his pants. “Sorry, big guy, but you’re right. If I have the ‘Alpha of the Pack’, it’s not gonna be ‘cause I submitted." She slipped her hand passed his waist band and held back a hiss when her fingers wrapped around his hard cock. Her grip was too gentle as she stroked down, jaw clenching at how long and thick and _heavy_ he was. "It's gonna be because you want me so damn badly you'll do anything to make it happen."

Mason bucked into her fist and leaned forward, ducking his head against her neck, and she lifted her other hand to slowly pet his hair, raking her fingers roughly over his scalp. “You’d get on your knees for me. Crawl to me just for a chance to lick at my heels. Kiss your way up my body, you’d fucking _worship_ me, Alpha. I’d get you to roll over and wouldn’t even let you touch me, ride you until _you’re_ the one crying for mercy. Begging for my permission to just put your hands on me. But until you’re ready to do that…” She let her hands fall. “Sorry.”

Mason pounded his fists on the table and Mae jumped in surprise, but his chuckle calmed her down. "Fuckin' tease," he grumbled lightheartedly. He leaned back to meet her eyes. "Y'know you ain't the only one who can get laid whenever they want."

"Mm, very true, but no one out there is _me_."

He kept her eyes on his as he readjusted his aching cock in his pants, and for a moment she thought he was going to kiss her as he leaned forward, but then he swung back.

“Night, kitten.”

The thrum of his voice sent a shiver down her spine. “Night, big guy.”


	6. Chapter 6

_She was in the flow of it now, vaulting over fences and cars trying to find a way up to higher ground. The Railroad Heavies after her still haven't given up, so there was no slowing down. Not that she minded - she loved the chase. Loved the adrenaline rush, loved getting away._

_An alleyway in peripheral view and she broke right, narrowly avoiding a bullet that zipped passed her head. She scaled the walls, leaping right then left, catching a window and perching the toes of her boots on the sill before springing up and hoisting herself onto the low roof, then up to the roof of the second level. She kept running, jumping the gap between her and the next building. No doubt she lost the Heavies, but her legs kept carrying her. She didn’t stop, and eventually there was no roof left in sight. But she kept going, her gut telling her to. So when she reached the ledge she let herself fall, tucking just in time to land with a safe roll on the unseen rooftop below._

  
Mae’s eyes fluttered open, and she felt better than she had in days. She went into her pack and sifted through the freshly cleaned clothes until she found her most practical pair of underwear - luxurious cream colored silk with just a bit of black lace detail on the hips. She shimmied on her Nuka jumpsuit, leaving it at her hips and tying the sleeves around her waist, then put on a Bottle tank top she had bought that the torso had been cut off of. The Nuka World mascot was positioned perfectly between her breasts, nuka cola spurting from its lip and Mae got a kick out out of the innuendo.

She decided to leave her pack - she never liked carrying one regularly. Too noisy, too floppy when she moved. So she stuffed her pockets with stimpaks then left Backstage.

  
It was raining again, and it made her mood even brighter. She pinned her hair up in her usual messy bun and shook a chill from her shoulders.

“Mornin’ angel,” Shorty greeted with a charming smile, but the pet name set off a pang of sadness in her chest. She hadn't been called that since... “Up to anything today?”

“Think I’m gonna walk around the park again, really get to know my surroundings.” She passed him with a hand on his shoulder and added with a mumble, “If the Alpha allows it.”

Mason was lounging on his throne like usual, and his lips twitched in a smile as his bouncing leg stuttered to a stop. “Mornin’ kitten.”

“Morning. I was planning on doing some more wandering around Nuka Town. Can I go?”

“Sure. Just watch your back.”

“Always do.” She turned to walk away, but stopped herself when she saw Icarus lurking in a shadowed corner. She started to approach him, sensing something was wrong, but Mason spoke up.

“Careful, he’s in a bad mood. Mutt got into a little scrap with that other one you claimed.”

“Nova?”

“Yeah. Tried to mount ‘er and she wasn’t feelin’ it. Went for his neck.”

A giggle bubbled up from her throat as she turned to the wounded mutt. “Let that be a lesson to you, boy.”

“And what lesson’s that?” Mason asked.

“Piss off your girl, and she’ll open your throat. Where’d Nova run off to?”

As if called, the white dog trotted over, blood smeared around her muzzle. “That’s a great look for you.” A bark in response, and she sat on the chair by Mason’s throne. “Icarus,” she made a kissy noise, “c’mere.” He didn’t obey. “Come.” A quiet growl, but he stood and stalked over with his head low. “You two make nice, yeah? Sit.”

The canines sat side by side near her chair, Icarus’s ears warily lowered. Mae glanced at Mason and saw him rubbing his hand over his mouth, wiping away a smirk.

 

Yet again, somehow Mae was roped into staying with him longer than she intended to. Two hours of chatting had passed, and eventually Mason brought up the other parks.

“Some of my guys don’t like livin’ in the slums,” he informed. “And they think I’m the one to complain about it to.”

“Aren’t you?” She remembered Shorty bringing her around the makeshift shelters built in specific corners of Nuka Town. Crowded, littered with concentrations of beer bottles and used chems. Sleeping bags were thrown about, some coupled together.

“It’s the Overboss’s call,” Mason told her. “He wants to ‘take stock’ on what we’ve achieved. My take on it? We ain’t achieved shit. Sure, this beats livin’ in the shitholes we had out there, but we could have so much more. My men could be livin’ better. All of ‘em.”

“So you aren’t allowed to go after the other parks?”

“That hasn’t been stressed, but no one wants to risk pissing Colter off.”

The Overboss’s words repeated in her mind. _You can do whatever the fuck you want._ “So what parks would you want if you could actually get them?”

“If I had my way? All of ‘em. But since it’s obvious that wouldn’t fly with the other gangs, Safari would be my first choice. Lots of cages there, plenty of buildings for shelter. Then there’s Kiddie Kingdom. The colors are fitting for the Pack, and there’s plenty of shit to do around there.”

“Hm…” A quiet whine caught her attention, and she looked to her mutts to see Nova licking at Icarus’s muzzle, his blood still on her own. “Looks like she’s forgiven ‘im. Anyway, I'm gonna get going.”

“Shorty goin’ with you?”

“Wasn’t planning on taking him, no.”

“… All right. Like I said, watch your back around the other gangs. ‘Specially the Disciples.”

“Got it.” She only got a few feet away before Mason spoke again.

“Hold on. Got any weapons?”

She stopped in her tracks, then patted her hip to find her pistol missing. “Fuck, are you serious? It took me this long notice?” She turned to him and wandered closer. “I think I dropped it during the fight outside of Nuka World. That or Colter took it.”

“You only carry one weapon?”

“I was in a hurry when I left... 'home'. Didn’t grab anything else.”

Mason stood up, causing Mae to stumble back a bit, and headed for Backstage. “Wait here.”

She obeyed, staying put for a few moments until Mason returned with a rifle splattered with different colors of bright paint. He tossed it to her, and she caught it in both hand. “Made this baby myself. Take it with you,” he ordered.

She looked it over before slinging it on her back. “Thanks. See you later.”

 

  
“Woah woah woah,” the guard said, jumping into her way. “You ain’t allowed to leave.”

“I’m not leaving Nuka World,” Mae countered. “I just wanna take a walk. Being cooped up for too long will make me restless. If you’re nervous about Colter, don’t be. He said I can do whatever I want as long as I don’t leave Nuka World.”

The guard hesitated, then stepped aside. “Just be back by sundown, yeah?”

 

* * *

 

Whatever Mae had expected of Safari Adventure, it wasn’t alligator/Deathclaw hybrids. They were bound to be too difficult to fight up front, so she took the sneak approach, thankful that the rain weighed down her scent and muted her steps. She silently made her way to what she figured was their nest - a large building with tracks concentrated around it. She picked open the entrance and snuck in, sniping down the Gatorclaw in the lobby before it sensed her then vaulting over the railing. She found the door that led deeper in, hacking it with her p.i.p and accessing a hidden cloning facility.

“Eggheads in the Institute would have a field day,” she mumbled to herself, finding the main lab and hacking into the terminal. She shut down the cloning device and made her way out, discovering the large sewer pipe the ‘claws have been using to get in and out.

The main problem had been taken care of, but there were still existing Gatorclaws around. So she snuck over to Cappy’s Treehouse and rode the lift up, then climbed onto the roof and used Mason’s rifle to snipe the ‘claws down one by one from the safe distance.

Something thick settled in her chest when she realized she actually missed the Alpha’s company. She  took a deep breath and held it, loosening the feeling and turning her focus to taking down the total amount of 27 clones.

 

Tracking and taking them down took a couple hours, some of them lurking in areas Mae couldn’t get a good shot on. But she had been waiting for thirty minutes for the last couple to show themselves and they still hadn’t appeared.

Then Mae realized - the lift had been awfully loud when it took her up to the Treehouse, and there were a couple of ‘claws nearby when she had punched the button. She slid down the roof and swung forward into the treehouse to peer down the banister.

Bingo. A Gatorclaw was patrolling just below her, waiting for her to descend. Mae perched a foot on the railing and aimed at the creature’s head, but just as she was about to shoot, the rotting wood broke under her foot and she fell forward.

Time seemed to slow down for the first moment of the fall. Mae locked her eyes on the horizon in the distance, the orange colored sky a beautiful contrast to the dark rainclouds that churned ahead of it. Strands of her hair lifted and wind curved around her, and for a split second her body and expression were completely languid.

Halfway down she turned and landed on the hedge maze wall, sinking a couple of inches into it from the weight of the impact. A roar next to her, and she sat up to send three bullets into the Gatorclaws head. It fell, and she laid back down to stare up at the bloated sky.

 

Mae stayed until the chill from the rain and lowering temperature started to make her shiver too severely. She pried herself from the dent she had made in the stiff branches and walked along the wall, jumping the gaps to head straight for the exit. After jumping down and getting a few feet away from the maze, a low hiss stopped her in her tracks.

 

* * *

 

The sky was dark and she still wasn’t back.

Mason whistled for the two Pack members that just came through. “You see the new girl anywhere?”

“Oh yeah,” one of them said. “She stumbled into the market place about half an hour ago. Looked fucked up, had her jumpsuit off and wrapped around her waist. just fuckin’ drenched in blood.”

The edges of his mind froze and tightened, images of Mae hurt and bleeding out plaguing his thoughts in rapid fire. “And you didn’t think to fuckin’ tell me this as soon as you saw her?”

His brows furrowed. “Why would I? Ain’t like you ask to know when any of us get hurt. We just get patched up and move on."

"Well it ain't a usual occurrence to have one of ours _drenched_ in their own blood, is it."

"Well... guess not. I'm sure the doc is takin' care of her right now."

Mason tried to keep himself on his throne, didn't want to appear worried, but after a struggling few minutes he bolted up and strode out of the Amphitheater.

 

 

“Oh, sir,” Mackenzie greeted. “I didn’t—“

“Where is she?” he cut off.

“I assume you’re talking about Mae? She’s resting in the medical tent. Looks like a Deathclaw got her in the side. Other injuries suggest she was thrown after that. I’ll be honest, I didn’t think she was gonna make it. But then she staggered to my chem station and showed me how to make some kind of… serum before she fell unconscious. Healed her up like a miracle. But she still lost a lot of blood.”

“I wanna see ‘er.”

“Of course, go right ahead.”

He rounded the counter and pushed the flap open, finding Mae on one of the cots. Her blood-soaked jumpsuit was on the table and her waist was smeared with blood, though it was obvious that Makenzie had tried to clean her up with a few rags.

Mason pulled up a chair to sit down, and the scraping sound had her eyes opening. “Mason?” she rasped.

“Yeah, kitten,” he mumbled. “It’s me.”

A smile that was too fucking sweet spread across her face. “Why’re you here?”

“Heard you got hurt, so I came to see if you were all right.”

She scrunched her nose. “Aww, ain’t that sweet. You shoulda seen it, big guy. The place was crawling with Deathclaw _hybrids_. One of them caught me by surprise and picked me up, and two of his claws went right through the back of my waist and out the front. Then he threw me and I thought I was done for. But then, _then_ , this… jungle guy, he beat the thing down with a fuckin’ wooden board.”

“Where the fuck did you go?” Mason questioned, brows furrowed.

She blinked at him, then shot up with a gasp, only to flop down again from dizziness. “Okay, not doing that again. I went to Safari Adventure and cleared the place out for the Pack. Our—your boys can move in whenever they're ready, so long as they don’t mind sharing with my new friend.”

He blinked at her. “You… you secured Safari Adventure?”

Her smile faltered. “Is that okay?”

 _Too fucking sweet._ “Understatement of the fuckin’ century. This is great, kitten, best news in a long fuckin’ time. I’m proud of you.”

Her expression softened, like what she had gone through was worth his praise. “Thanks boss. Means a lot. Can you… can we go back now? I wanna get this blood off my skin.”

“‘Course, sweetheart.” He helped her sit up slowly to put her jumpsuit on again, then hooked his arm under her legs and scooped her up, cradling her to his chest.

“Hey, I can walk,” she argued halfheartedly, already relaxing against his chest.

“We’ll get there faster this way.”

 

  
“Holy shit, you okay, princess?”

Mason felt annoyance spike through him, but Mae turned her face away from his chest and gave Shorty a smile. “Fine. Just got a little kerfuckled.”

“Is that a word?”

“No, but I feel like it applies.” Her mutts were at Mason’s feet now, trotting around him and whining. “Hey guys. I’m okay.”

Mason hefted her in his arms and made his way to the Backstage. “Let’s get you cleaned up, kitten.”

“Mmm, you gonna help me out, _boss_?”

He smiled at the giggle that bubbled up from her throat and carried her into the recovery room. After standing Mae on her feet near the shower she took off the rifle, then bent down to strip off her underwear only to sway forward dizzily.

“Woah there,” Mason said lowly as he helped her steady. “Let me.” He crouched down and hooked his fingers under the lace, tugging slowly.

“I can undress myself,” Mae grumbled.

“Oh?” Mason responded, nipping at her hip. “Tell me more.”

She gave him a gentle shove and he grinned up at her before standing and helping her strip off her tank top and finally her bra.

“Sweet fuckin’ Jesus,” Mason sighed, drinking in the sight of her stripped bare. She was so fucking perfect, too fucking beautiful for the shithole that was his world.

“Tell me more,” she breathed with a flashing smile, and then freezing water was pouring down on both of them and he flinched in surprise. Mae laughed, and Mason shook his head vigorously to fling drops of water from his hair. She clung a hand to his arm as she reached for her pack, digging out two bottles with a white cloth and setting them on the table near them. After pouring some some kind of goo on the cloth she lathered it up, and Mason realized it was soap. He hadn’t seen it come in any form but those waxy bars.

“Help me out,” she mumbled, handing him the sudsy cloth.

With rapt attention Mason washed her body as she cleaned her hair, and he surprised himself each time he placed a gentle kiss on her skin. Alphas didn’t do that. _He_ didn't do that. Too soft, too intimate, too caring.

When he finished and turned off the water she was shivering and weak, so he scooped her up again and gently laid her down on the bed, covering her naked body with the blanket.

“Thanks, boss,” she mumbled, eyes closed.

He smiled to himself. “You get some rest. Sure as hell deserve it.”


	7. Chapter 7

Mae woke up around 3pm still feeling weak. So she took an Institute revitalizer, dressed in low-rising shorts and a cropped Cappy shirt, then left Backstage.

“Mae,” one of the members called. “Mason wants to talk to you.”

She nodded and went to his throne, petting both her dogs when they greeted her. “Hey boss. You wanted to see me?”

“Some of our men are moving into Safari,” he informed. “And they ain’t gonna bother your friend there.”

“I appreciate it,” she smiled. “Did the other gangs catch wind?”

“Yeah, and so’s Colter. He wants to see you.”

She closed her eyes and tried not to cringe. “Okay. I’ll go see him now.”

“… Want me to tag along?”

“I’m a big girl, I can meet with the boss myself. Plus, I think he’s gonna have something else in mind besides conversation. And that’s if he doesn’t kill me.”

 

  
Colter was waiting at the bar. “You were busy yesterday.”

“Yes sir,” Mae nodded. “I took Safari Adventure for the Pack.”

“So I hear.” He stood up. “If you wanted to clear out the parks, girlie, ya should've told me. I’ll let you.”

“Really?”

“Sure. You think about which gangs should get which parks? They can’t all go to the Pack.”

She was taken aback for a moment, but recovered quickly. “Uh, actually, I have. Kiddie Kingdom to the Pack, Dry Rock and Galactic Zone to the Operators and the Bottling Plant to the Disciples.”

“You sure you want to give the Disciples the short end?”

She nodded.

“… All right.” He grabbed her arm. “Let’s fuck on it.”

 

  
Mason’s eyes widened, and he stood up. “The fuck? Did he hit you?”

Mae laughed stupidly and rubbed at the red spot on her cheek. “Uh, he slapped me. ‘Cause…” another laugh. “I said your name, when he was…” She gestured weakly. “Didn’t kill me, though. Which is good. And don’t worry, I told him we haven’t done anything. He also wants me to take the rest of the parks for the other gangs, not counting Kiddie Kingdom. I called that one for—oh, okay.” She let him tug her along towards Backstage.

 

* * *

 

“Did you come, kitten?” Mason asked her lowly, holding back a smirk when her eyelids fluttered and her shoulders slumped.

She shook her head. “Tried to think of you to make it better, but he… wasn’t you. And after I said your name he made sure I wouldn’t be able to. Had me finish him off with my mouth, which was _not_ fun…” She glanced away in a decidedly adorable way. “‘Cause it was him.” She took in a subtle breath, then huffed and pushed him away to stand up. “I don’t want him of all people to be the last person I did that to, so I was wondering…”

He watched her sink to her knees, hands going to his belt. “Shit, you serious? Thought you said you didn’t wanna submit.”

“This isn’t submitting. If you think about it, you’ll be at my mercy.” He cocked a brow at that, and she chomped her teeth with a loud clack.  _Oh, shit. Okay._

 She took him out of his pants, biting her lip at the sight of him and giving him teasing strokes as she kissed his hip.

“Lookin’ real good down there, kitten,” he thrummed, threading his fingers through the roots of her hair. _Almost died taking Safari for us. Shouldn’t be the one on her knees._ “You sure you wanna do this?”

She answered by kissing the head of his cock, then taking him into her mouth. Mason’s head rolled back and his grip in her hair flexed.

She hummed around him like she loved this, loved it when the head breached her throat, loved how his hips jerked from the feeling. She wrapped her fingers around what she couldn’t fit in her mouth and met his eyes.

“Fuck,” Mason breathed, trying his damnedest not to just use her hair to fuck her mouth. “Touch yourself for me, kitten.” She moaned around him, her eyes fluttering closed for a moment before she slid her hand passed her shorts.

It wasn’t long before she was rolling her hips, riding her fingers as she moaned and whimpered around him. “That’s it, kitten. Fuck, you’re drivin’ me fuckin’ crazy here.” She grew more enthusiastic with the sound of his voice, and he’d be lying if he said it didn’t give him an ego boost.

He pulled her back when he was close, and she immediately protested. “No, no, no,” she breathed passed purple-painted lips. “Wanna—wanna swallow you when I come.”

“Fuck,” he growled, loosening his grip, and she quickly took him in her mouth again. He couldn’t help himself, started to fuck into her mouth but she didn’t seem to mind, just rode her fingers faster.

When he came with a growl she swallowed him down eagerly, her hips jerking and then she was moaning, almost choking but her expression was downright blissful.

Mae dragged her lips off his cock after she had taken him for all he was worth, then stood up, placing wet kisses over his tank top. “Was it…?”

He gave her a dazed smile as he tucked himself back in his pants. “Best I’ve had, sweetheart.”

She smiled back proudly, and she looked so damn good with her lips all swollen and wet, her cheeks flushed and eyes shining. “I aim to please.” She took a step back. “So, tomorrow morning I’m going to head to Kiddie Kingdom. I wanna get the Pack settled first. Then I’ll move on to the others.”

“Who’s feelings are you plannin’ to hurt?” he asked.  _Guess we're just movin' on to normal conversation now._

“Disciples.”

“Mae…”

“Colter already warned me. It’ll be fine. I’ll be fine.”

Mason shifted his weight. “… I’m comin’ with you. To Kiddie Kingdom.”

Her eyes widened. “You don’t have to do that—“

“I know I don’t, but I want to. You almost got yourself killed at Safari. What if this time there ain’t no jungle man to save you?” He hardened his expression. “I’m comin’ with you.”

She stared into his eyes for a moment, thinking, then smiled. “All right.”

A burst of light and loud crack of concrete in front of them, and his first thought was to get Mae behind him.

 

* * *

 

A blink of an eye, and she was facing his back with his his hand on her thigh in a protective grip.

“The fuck?” Mason growled, and Mae peered around him.

“Conrad,” she sighed in relief. “It’s okay, Mason. He’s a friend.”

“The hell you doin’ here, Mae?” Kellogg asked with furrowed brows.

“The relay dropped me off in the middle of nowhere. I walked for a few days, used up all my rations until I ended up here. Now, I’m…” she shrugged. “A Raider. Anyway, how’d you find me?”

“I put a tracker in your p.i.p that can only be accessed by mine. Activated it as soon as things died down. Don’t worry, I disabled it permanently right after I locked onto your location.”

“When did you install a _tracker_ in my p.i.p?”

“Right before I gave it to you all those years back. Thought it’d be useful.”

She noticed the eye contact he had with Mason and quickly spoke up, feeling the butting tension in the air. “Kellogg, this is Mason. Alpha of the Pack. That’s the name of his gang. Mason, this is Kellogg, a friend of mine.”

Mason nodded slowly. “Okay, so what’s he doin’ in my territory?”

Kellogg shrugged off the two stuffed duffle bags he was hauling on both shoulders. “Came to resupply her. Got the rest of your weapons and clothes, lotta grenades, and some more cosmetic stuff.”

“Oh my god I love you,” Mae sighed, taking the bags and setting them on the table. “So what’s the situation?”

“They were and are _still_ highly fuckin’ pissed. Have me lookin’ for you. Old man thinks it’d be perfect if I was the one to end you, I guess. Too bad I can’t find you. You’re a real sneaky one, aren’t you.” She smiled gratefully. “Listen, I can’t stay long. Are you happy here? I don’t have to rescue you or nothin’?”

“I’m fine, Connie,” she assured. “Thanks for the supplies.”

He nodded and gripped her hair in a fist to pull her closer, placing a kiss on her forehead. “I’ll check on you again in a month or two. Can’t come here too often or they’ll catch on.” He looked at Mason. “If she ends up dead I promise you I’ll raze this whole place to the fucking ground. Alpha.” With that he disappeared in a bolt of light.

“So,” Mae breathed, gesturing to the scorch mark in the floor. “That was Kellogg. Anyway, I’m gonna stash these somewhere.”

“Stash ‘em, why?” Mason responded.

She slung both bags over her shoulders. “Well this is high quality stuff and Raiders tend to steal.”

Mason glanced at the ground for a moment, thinking. “… Just put ‘em in my room. C’mon.”

“Oh.” She followed him through the door. “You’re not just doing this so you can control how I use my stuff, are you?”

“No, you can go in my room whenever you want.”

She swallowed hard and followed him through Backstage to a room in the back, closing the door behind them. “Woah,” she breathed, staring at the massive bed covered in blankets and furs as she put her things down.

“You like it, kitten?” Mason thrummed. “You can sleep in here if you want.”

Her brows furrowed. “Tonight?”

“Every night. The bunks ain’t for you, but I can’t have you in the recovery room all the time.”

She stared up at him. “You doin’ this outta the kindness of your heart, or do you have an ulterior motive.”

“Me? ‘Course not.”

“Hmm.” She narrowed her eyes at him as she opened the door. “Thanks, but I’ll go with the bunks.” When she turned her head forward she felt air zip passed her head. She stared blankly at the middle distance, feeling a stinging pain on the shell of her ear and something hot and wet drip down her neck.

Mason breezed passed her and she could practically feel the anger radiating from him. She watched him grab a woman by the front of her shirt and haul her up to throw her through the door.

“You must be outta your fuckin’ mind,” he growled, the thrum of his voice invoking fear just on its own.

“Me?” the woman said harshly, the zoo gathering around as she stumbled up. “You are! You’re supposed to be Alpha! Now some pretty face walks in and immediately you start disappearing with her, rushin’ to her when she’s hurt and now just a few days later she’s _moving_ into your room? Why does she get—“

Mason wrapped his hand around her neck and pinned her to the wall. “I think you forgot your place, girl. What I do privately is none of your goddamn business. You almost killed one of our own and for what? Jealousy?”

Mae heard the woman struggle to breathe, saw tears well in her eyes, and her chest tightened. “Mason.” She put her hand on his bicep and she could feel his muscles thrumming. “Put her down. Please?”

His fingers twitched and he growled, but only in hesitation before doing as she said, letting the woman slump to the ground in a coughing fit.

“See?” she choked out. “Any other time you woulda killed me! Now she tells you not to and you listen?”

“Who says I ain’t gonna kill ya?” He lifted his foot above her head, and her scream was abruptly cut off as he stomped down.

Mae stepped back, shrinking away from the sickening crack of her skull and the splatter of flesh. She quickly scanned the crowd and as soon as her eyes landed on Shorty he was rushing over to her.

“It’s all right, princess,” he soothed quietly, draping his arm around her and curling her into his chest.

“I didn’t mean…”

“Ain’t your fault. Mason makes examples of people every week.”

The Alpha moved to the center of the Amphitheater, and everyone followed. “Anybody else have somethin’ stupid to say?” he announced. “Anyone got a problem? I’m all ears.” Silence. “If anyone thinks Mae’s gettin’ special treatment, it’s ‘cause she is. She took a fuckin’ park for us, somethin’ no one’s managed in the fuckin’ year we’ve been here. She risked her life for the Pack, almost got herself ripped apart for people she met _days_ ago. She deserves a bit of favor.”

“No one’s arguing with you, boss,” a woman piped up. “It was just T. She was obsessed with you, got jealous.” Everyone mumbled in agreement, and Masons scanned the crowd. “… Scatter.”

The crowd dispersed and Mason strode to his throne.

Mae stared at the bloody mess of T’s head. “He just…”

“C’mon, baby,” Shorty said. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”


	8. Chapter 8

“Fuck, that was close,” Shorty mumbled, cleaning the blood around the bullet graze. “You sure you don’t want a stim?”

“Don’t wanna waste one on something so little,” Mae responded, perched on the recovery table. _If I hadn’t turned when I did…_

Her mind kept replaying the scene in her head, Mason crushing that woman’s skull under his boot. She had almost forgotten the power and strength he held, how dangerous he was. Caught off guard, he could easily kill her. Strangle her with one hand, rip her arms off if he felt like it.

 _Piss him off enough, he’ll hurt you. He’ll rip you apart, he’ll kill you._ “Shorty?”

“Yeah, honey.”

“Can I sleep with you tonight? Not fuck or anything. Just… sleep.”

His brows furrowed. “Yeah, course. You okay?”

“Fine. But after what happened with H and his pal, I don’t wanna sleep all alone around everyone.”

“Y’know no one else is gonna do that, right? H and Travis were fuckin’ idiots. Mason only let them stay in here ‘cause they were tough fighters.”

“Still.”

He studied her expression for a moment. “… All right. Wanna hop in now?”

“Let me change my clothes first.”

 

  
After putting on a thin and ridiculously comfortable cropped cotton tank top (she had praised Liam highly for this one) and a pair of grey underwear she hurried out of Mason’s room and found Shorty’s bed in the corner.

“Christ, do you have to wear that?” he mumbled as she hopped onto the mattress.

She blinked at him, leaning forward on her hands with her legs tucked under her. “What d’you mean? I always where this kinda stuff to bed.”

“Yeah well unless you want my cock pokin’ you all night you’ll change.”

She gave a dramatic sigh, then bounced off the bed and patted back to Mason’s room.

 

“I don’t have anything that won’t turn him on,” she mumbled confidently to herself. “I refuse to wear pants to bed, that’s just not practical…”

Ultimately she chose an oversized cotton sweater, the article of clothing reaching her knees. When she went for the door, it swung open and she stumbled back. “Mason,” she sighed. "I was just changing.”

He stared at her for a moment, then closed the door behind him and took a step closer, effectively getting her to back up again. He reached for her arm and she swatted him away - a decidedly brave thing to do, and worry flooded her chest.

“You scared of me now, kitten?” he murmured.

“You didn’t have to kill her,” she responded. “And definitely not like that.”

“Mae, she tried to put a bullet in your head.”

“So you could’ve thrown her out.”

“Leaving her alive would give her a chance of comin’ after you again. I’d kill anyone who threatens a Pack member, especially if its one of our own.”

She glanced away, nodded. “‘Kay. Whatever you say. Goodnight.”

“You can sleep in here, y’know.”

“It’s fine, I’m bunkin’ with Shorty.”

“Shorty?” he repeated with furrowed brows. “Beds out there are barely big enough for two.”

She crossed her arms. “Let me ask you something. Why would T have a reason to be jealous?”

Mason glanced away, shifting his weight. “Well, as Alpha I usually have a… companion, at night. T had a special talent, so I may have had her a few more times than the others. Guess she got clingy.”

“That’s what happens to the ones who get clingy, huh?”

“No, that’s what happens when you go against the code of the Pack.”

“Sure. Okay. Night, boss.”

“Mae.” He put his hand on the door when she went for it, towering over her with his chest to her back. “Stay here.”

Her stomach fluttered with heat and she allowed her eyes to close for a moment. “Thought you didn’t have an ulterior motive.”

“Don’t. Just wanna hold you, kitten.”

“As Alpha you could have anyone, right? I’m sure you can settle.” She opened the door, but Mason only slammed it closed again.

“I told you to stay here.” He stepped closer to her, his crotch pressing up against her ass and his free hand snaking around her waist.

The mechanical response rose to her throat. A simple _Understood_ , to orders that couldn’t be refused. But this wasn’t the Institute, this was the Commonwealth and not one single fucking person had control over her.

She elbowed him hard in his side. He retracted back with a growl and she slipped out of his room to stride back to Shorty.

“Everything okay?” he asked as she approached.

“Peachy,” she responded, lifting the thin blanket up to burrow under and curl into the Raider, trying not to flinch at the crash that sounded from Mason’s room.

“Cuddly type, huh?”

“Problem?”

“No ma’am.” He laid down, and she turned her back to him so he could drape his arm over her and pull her close, her back to his chest.

They heard Mason’s door creak and Mae wriggled further under the blanket before he stalked into the room. His eyes locked with hers, but only for a moment.

“Oooh, okay,” Shorty mumbled. “I’m your stand-in ‘cause you two are bein’ pissy.”

Mason whistled to a woman lounging on one of the couches, and she bolted up, practically chasing the Alpha into his bedroom.

Mae huffed and flopped over to look at Shorty. “I don’t wanna submit to ‘im,” she whispered. “Not till he submits to me.”

“The Alpha doesn’t submit, sweetheart.”

“Then I guess it ain’t happening between us, ‘cause I’m not giving in… You’re not mad, are you? Most of the reason I’m in your bed is ‘cause I like you. I'm not trying to use you against him or anything.”

He smiled lazily. “Aw shucks. I like you too, angel. Don't worry, I ain’t mad. I get it. Knew you two were gonna be like this since the first time you sat by his throne. Boss ain’t never relaxed the way he does when he’s with you.”

She paused. “… You’re just sayin’ that.”

“I’m serious.”

“… He took another girl to bed.”

“He’s spiteful. Don’t let your feelin’s get hurt. You turn him down?”

“He ordered me to stay so I elbowed him in the ribs.”

Shorty closed his eyes and huffed a laugh through his nose. “Go ta sleep.”

Mae hummed happily and shifted closer to him. “Night, Shorty.”

“Night, baby.”

 

* * *

 

Mason’s jaw clenched as the woman on all fours beneath him mewled and cried out, growled obscenities as he fucked her. It was good, it was sex, but it wasn’t _her_. He wanted to hear those cries from Mae, wanted to feel the silk of her hair between his fingers, have her looking up at him as he drilled her into the mattress.

He really fucked it up. Shouldn’t have ordered her. Not her. Now she was probably letting Shorty fuck her, she liked him well enough. Was probably making all sorts of pretty noises for him, trying to stay quiet so they weren’t heard under that blanket.

“Boss!” the Pack member screamed, her cunt seizing around him.

_Ain’t her voice, ain’t callin’ my actual name. Ain’t her._

 

  
In the morning the Pack member was already gone. Mason got dressed and armed himself with his sledgehammer, then went out to the bunks. Shorty’s arm was draped over Mae’s stomach and her chest rose steadily, her sweater riding up to her chest.

Mason felt a pang of anger and swatted her cheek. “Wake up.” He took a step back when she bolted up with a gasp, and Shorty’s arm tightened around her.

“Just another nightmare, baby,” he slurred. “C’mere.” When she didn’t do as he said, he cracked his eyes open and his arm practically flew off of Mae.

 _Yeah, damn fuckin’ straight._ “We’re leavin’ soon, kitten.”

She stared at him groggily for a moment, then it came to her. “Right. Kiddie Kingdom. Gimme a sec.”

“Sure.” He watched her jog over to the door, checking the weather, and a smile spread across her face at the sight of the rain. Then she made her way to his room.

 

* * *

 

Mae rummaged through the weapons duffel, sighing happily when she found the sleek laser pistol she had been hoping Kellogg packed. She tossed it onto the bed with a few ammo cartridges, then moved on to her clothes bag. After putting on underwear she started looking for a shirt, but stopped when she found a bat at the bottom wrapped in an unfamiliar leather jacket. Letting the bat roll out she lifted the jacket up and flipped it - embroidered on the back in violent red, no doubt by Liam, was _Bite Me_ , wolf jaws depicted above the words, white with a red tongue.

She closed her eyes, a slow, toothy smile spreading across her face.

The door opened, and she scrambled.

“Fuck, you’re skittish,” Mason said, brows furrowing at her ready-to-run stance.

“I always get jumpy when doors open,” she responded, taking a white cropped shirt out of the bag and willing the blush in her cheeks to go down. “Means someone’s gonna find me, and that means, well, _meant_  being caught.”

“And being caught was bad,” he assumed, retrieving a sawed off shotgun from the corner of the room.

“Being caught was the first step to being killed. But I’m good at running.”

“You got caught a lot?”

“Nah, I was good at what I did. But the few times I did have someone find me…” She yanked on her old uniform, the jumpsuit easy to move in, and left the torso bunched at her hips. “I dunno. Wasn’t a bad thing. The chase is kinda exciting, and losing anyone who was after me was always gratifying.” she shrugged on the jacket, and she heard Mason huff out a laugh.

“Like it?” she asked him, tossing him a smile over her shoulder.

“Definitely fitting. A little big, though.”

“Kellogg probably had Liam think he was making it for him, so he sized it wrong. I don’t really care. I like my jackets big.” She stepped closer to him and handed him a holster, then turned her back to him. “Help me out?”

“Sure, kitten.”

He sounded a little solemn this morning, and it was making unease churn in her gut. “Everything all right, big guy?”

He fastened the holster to the back of her jacket, then took the bat and attached it. “Fine. Just… sorry is all.” She closed her eyes for a moment, then turned around to look at him. “Last night… Shouldn’t have acted like that. Just… got jealous.”

“Yeah, well I’m not yours to get jealous over.”

“I know, kitten.”

She held his eyes for a moment. “… Well… you feel what you feel, I guess. Can’t change that. Still gotta control it, though.” She holstered her laser pistol and pocketed the ammo. “Ready?”

“All set.”

“By the way, you can stop acting mopey. I’m not mad at you anymore and I didn’t fuck Shorty.” She noticed how he squared his shoulders at that, but then he simply nodded before taking the lead out of Backstage.

“Shorty said you had a nightmare,” he mentioned quietly.

She closed her eyes and immediately jerked her head to throw the memory off, but she couldn’t stop it. It flashed through her mind like a flip book with pages torn out, but she still somehow saw every moment, recalled every word in less than a second.

 

_“I ain’t waitin’ no more,” Marowski told her, blocking her way down the hotel corridor. He drew his submachine gun._

_“Woah woah, hey,” Cig said quickly as he came from behind Mae with his hands palm-side up, and they both saw the mobster’s finger twitch._

_Then Cig sideslipped in front of her, bullets flew and he stumbled back into her. Mae caught him with her arms hooked under his, her eyes going wide as they both went down. She quickly grabbed her laser pistol. searing a hole in Marowski’s neck before dropping the weapon and scrambling to lay Cig down, cradling his head in her hand._

_“Shit,_ shit, _” she hissed. “I’ll go get—“_

_“No, no” he told her. “It’s too bad, angel. I'm—“ his chest spasmed and blood spurted passed his lips. "Just... stay."_

_“Cig—“_

_“Eden,” he corrected. “My name’s Eden.”_

_That struck her like a super mutant’s hammer. “Eden… No wonder you never wanted to tell me."_ _He choked on a laugh, his smile wiped away just as soon as it appeared, giving away to the twist of pain in his expression. "_ _My name’s Mae,” she told him, and just like that both of them had broken the rule they set two years ago._

_“Mae,” he repeated with the ghost of a smile. “You make this worth it, y’hear? You stay alive, and you stay happy, and stay fuckin’ free. All right?” She nodded, and his head grew heavier. “Say it again. For me.”_

_She swallowed hard. “Eden.” She leaned down and kissed him, full, soft, and warm. Didn't pay any mind to the blood on his lips. His hand lifted to cradle the back of her head._

_“Mae,” he repeated, like it was the prettiest thing he’d heard, a sacred word that meant so much. His trembling fingers buried into her hair. “You keep runnin’, angel. You keep runnin’…”_

 

“Doesn’t matter,” she told Mason.

“If you—“

“Mason, just… leave it, okay? Leave it.”

He stared at her, assessed her, before looking forward again. “No problem.”


	9. Chapter 9

At the gate, Mags Black was speaking to the second guard. As soon as Mae appeared her mutts were at her feet, heads low as she walked to their guest.

“Hello Mae,” the Raider boss smiled. “I assume you know why I’m here.”

“Unannounced,” Mason added lowly.

“Apologies, but this couldn’t wait.”

“You wanna make sure you get your own parks,” Mae assumed.

“Exactly. I know you’re not going to let your gang get the short end, so that leaves my crew and the Disciples. You need to know that—“

“Save the speech,” Mae cut in. “I’ve already planned it out. The Operators are going to get Dry Rock Gulch and The Galactic Zone.”

“Oh,” Mags blinked. “Well, that’s good to hear. Those were my immediate choices. I’m glad you have a good head on your shoulders. Backing the Operators is—“

“I’m just a Pack member, Mags. You don’t need to act like I’m something more.”

“You really like interrupting, don’t you.”

“I don’t have much patience for boring conversation. I like you Mags, I do, but we don’t need to talk about this. You’ll get your territories soon.”

“Understood. I’ll see you later, Mae.” She nodded at Mason. “Alpha.”

He nodded back, then whistled for the guard when the gate opened.

“Yeah Boss,” the Pack member answered.

“If Nisha or any of her guys shows up, don’t let them in. Got it?”

“Yessir.”

Mae felt unease twist her gut. “You think Nisha will show up?”

“She knows she ain’t welcome here, but I don’t think that’s gonna stop ‘er. ‘Specially when she finds out she’s just getting one park.”

Mae sighed, then pinned her hair up. “Let’s go.”

 

* * *

 

Halfway to Kiddie Kingdom, a question rose to Mae’s throat and she knew it would bother her until she spit it out. “Hey Mason?”

“Yeah.”

“If I killed a Pack member, would you give me the same fate as T?”

A pause, then he shook his head.

“Why? Why am I so special? ’Cause you wanna fuck me?”

“No, ‘course not.” He sounded convincing. “It’s just… That ain’t who you are. If you killed one of ours, I’d know it was for a good reason. You wouldn’t kill anyone otherwise.”

She huffed out a humorless laugh. “You act like you know so much about me.”

“You ain’t a complicated person, kitten. A few hours over a few days is all I needed.”

“Sum me up then. Let’s see how much of an expert you’ve become.”

He thought for a moment. “Well… you’re sweet. Too fuckin’ sweet. At least until someone pisses you off. You prefer rain and night and shit like that ‘cause it’s… I dunno, kinda like a cover. I think you’re used to it. You hold on to what you can of your lifestyle back in whatever kinda utopia the Institute is - fancy underwear and beauty shit, luxury kinda stuff…” A small pause. “You focus more on the now. Don’t really think about what’s ahead. Like, if you fell off a roof you’d enjoy the view on the way down.”

She closed her eyes and rubbed at her face with both hands. “Oh my god, that actually happened,” she mumbled against her palms. “When I was at Safari.”

“You fell off a fuckin’ roof?”

“Well, out of a treehouse. I prefer high up places. Harder to see me up there.” She peaked through her fingers at him. “You missed that about me.”

He smiled. “But how’d I do on the rest?”

“… Fine. You’re more perceptive than I thought.”

His grin widened, but then disappeared slowly. “… Mae, if I let that woman off the hook, the zoo’s gonna think I’m goin’ soft. Someone else is gonna think they’ll get off easy if they kill one of ours. I can’t let that kind of shit slide. But I don’t go hurtin’ my people for no reason.”

“… Shorty said you make examples of people every week.”

“Yeah, I give beat downs to people who step outta line, and they bounce back. I don’t go killin’ ‘em.”

She swallowed. “… You just… stomped right on ‘er head.”

“I was pissed off.” A short silence stretched before he spoke again, quietly. “Just… tell me you ain’t afraid of me. You didn’t give me a straight answer last night.”

“… I’m not. I mean, you can be scary sometimes, sure, but…” She shook her head. “I’m not.”

“Then how do you feel around me?”

She answered after a few heartbeats. “Comfortable. Safe… I like talking to you.”

He smiled. “Too fuckin’ sweet.”

 

* * *

 

After taking down their third wave of ferals with the ring leader’s constant taunting, Mason was burning with annoyance. 

“Gonna rip the guy to fuckin’ pieces,” he growled, swinging at a feral’s neck and sending its head flying. Mae had been keeping her distance from his sledge, taking down her share of ferals with her bat. Even though it took her a couple swings for each one, she was still proving to be a forced to be reckoned with, not tiring out or complaining.

She caught him by surprise, appearing by his side from behind him and reaching up to grip the back of his neck, messaging away the tension, and his head rolled forward as his muscles relaxed.

“We’ll get ‘im, okay?” she assured. “Don’t go all behemoth on me.”

“Uh huh,” he mumbled, distracted by the relief kneading into his neck. She stepped behind him and added her other hand to move lower, her palms tracing tight, hard circles between his shoulder blades before applying pressure as she slid them back up. Then she patted his shoulders and moved ahead.

“C’mon, let’s get to the funhouse.”

 

  
Mae went through the building with ease, her small build and finesse coming in handy. Mason, however, was even more annoyed than he was outside. Mae waited patiently, always a few steps ahead of him.

“Why’re you so fuckin’ nimble?” he asked, finally across the spinning bottles.

“It was part of my job,” she answered simply. “Had to be agile. Which makes us a good team, ‘cause you’re… not. And I’m not a walking tank that can rip the hand off a yao gui. Two halves that make a whole.”

He huffed out a laugh. “Yeah, guess you’re right.”

“Can I lead the way?”

“Go ahead, kitten.”

She gave him a bright smile, a fucking beacon ripping through his cloud of anger, and went ahead.

Naturally Mason’s eyes darted low. “Your ass looks fuckin’ great in that jumpsuit.”

A laugh bubbled up from her throat. “Sweet talker.”

  
Finding that the ring leader had escaped, Mason completely destroyed the console in the control room they had spotted him in. Through his rage he could see Mae shrinking away in peripheral sight, but then she stepped closer and lashed her hands out to hold his face, forcing him to look into her eyes. The whiskey color of her irises cooled the itching burn in his chest almost immediately, replacing it with a calming warmth. Her body swayed and he found himself doing the same, too focused on keeping eye contact.

“Okay?” she mumbled simply, nails trailing up to gently scratch his scalp.

His eyes broke away from hers to glance at her plump lips. “Okay,” he repeated with a nod.

Her hands lowered to soothe over his chest before leaving him completely, then they pressed ahead.

 

* * *

 

Mae kept an eye on her Alpha as they moved on to King Cola Castle, making sure his temper remained under control. When the ring leader, a Glowing One named Oswald, appeared on the lower stage Mason didn’t hesitate. But before his sledgehammer struck the man’s head Oswald disappeared in a puff of smoke.

“You’re fuckin’ kidding me,” Mason growled. “Ain’t no fuckin’ way.”

“ _It seems your asinine assault won’t be dissuaded,_ ” Oswald said through the speakers. _“I guess it’s time for the final act. Join me on the roof and we’ll see an end to this production_.”

Mason was off before the announcement even ended. And once they reached the roof he didn’t let the Glowing One get a single word out before he went for him with his shotgun. The bullets nailed him in the chest and he was gone, reappearing on the top catwalk to emit a burst of radiation that revived over a dozen ferals on the roof.

“You get Oswald,” Mae called. “I’ll take care of the ferals.”

Mason was happy to oblige. She continued to keep her eye on him as she cut down the shamblers, and he seemed to move faster, Oswald barely having time to avoid the shotgun blows.

It was a while before the last feral dropped, and Mae turned her attention to where Mason and Oswald were again face to face. The magician staggered on the catwalk from wounds he could no longer mysteriously heal, and Mason took his weakness to advantage. Grabbing his sledgehammer he bashed the Ghoul’s head in, and as he repeated the action a few times out of spite Mae could only focus on the muscles of his arms working under his skin. In the back of her mind she knew it was morbid to be turned on by a guy bludgeoning someone to death, but she couldn’t help it.

Once he was satisfied with the glowing, bloody mess he made, the Alpha jumped down from the catwalk and locked his eyes on Mae’s.

His heated gaze, the heave of his chest and roll of his shoulders... it broke her resolve. She strode towards him and Mason lashed his hand out, gripping her hair and pulling her into a firm, searing kiss.

Every inch of her was drowned in heat and arousal and want, and she moaned, desperately clinging at his tank top. He ran his tongue across her lips and she opened to him eagerly, hands moving up his chest to claw at his shoulders.

Mason walked her backwards into the makeshift living quarters Oswald had set up in the corner, tossing her bat and yanking off her jacket before sitting her on a table, shifting her ass closer to the edge and standing between her thighs. Still kissing him she reached between them and fumbled with his belt while he yanked her jumpsuit down with her underwear, almost pulling her off the table altogether. When he tried to turn her over a voice inside Mae snarled  _No he fucking doesn’t_ , and she kicked him hard in his gut to make him stumble back.

After a frustrated and damn near feral growl Mason met her eyes, and silently they made a mutual decision - not his way, not hers.

He was on her again quickly, teeth against her neck and tongue laving her pulse point as he slid his fingers along her sex. Mae felt impatience flare in her chest and she wrapped her legs around his hips to lock her ankles together at the small of his back. “C’mon,” she urged, voice frayed.

A quick glance at her, then his cock was gliding against her folds before pushing in, and she pulled him closer with one arm around his neck and the other draped over his shoulder, nails clawing into his back. Mae’s heart was going wild against her ribcage and her stomach was churning with arousal and excitement, and mixed with the delicious burn of Mason pushing into her it was almost making her delirious.

He didn’t stop until he was bottoming out, breath hot on her neck and a hand gripping her hip with white knuckles. Mae grasped at him desperately - he was so deep and so fucking thick, he filled her perfectly, her walls already starting to pulse around him and then suddenly that dirty heat was coiling inside her gut, building her up so quickly it made her legs tremble.

She came with a strangled cry, bucking against Mason’s hips as if he could get deeper.

“Fucking goddamn _shit_ ,” Mason growled, hooking one of her legs over his arm and bracing his hand on the edge of the table, keeping her open so he could get as close as possible.

“C’mon,” she repeated, the dying waves of her orgasm still hitting her. 

Mason didn’t waste a second, his hips going into overdrive and Mae’s body shaking the table with momentum. Mason sunk his teeth into the crook of her neck and she buried a hand in his hair, cradling the back of his head while her other hand stayed against his shoulder blade, fingers under his tank top and nails digging into his skin.

Frayed whimpers and cries poured from her, the Alpha hitting her sweet spot incessantly, his thrusts always reaching deep and the pleasure so intense it bordered on maddening.

When she came again it was almost painful, too hard and too close to her last one, but she chased the pain, growling and biting down on Mason’s shoulder. He stopped pulling out and just rolled his hips forward in slow, powerful thrusts that shoved the table back on its legs. Once Mae went limp he pulled out and came on her stomach in thick spurts.

“Holy shit,” Mae huffed as Mason slumped to the ground, bringing her with him so she landed on top of him. “That was…”

“Mm,” Mason grunted, his fingers lightly brushing up and down the small of her back.

She took a minute to get her breathing under control, then spoke again. “You’re not one of those guys that knock out after one round, are you.”

“Hell, give me two minutes and I’ll fuck you again. But it’ll have to be my way.”

“No, next time will be my way. I may have had a moment of weakness but I assure you, I’ll make you crawl for a chance to fuck me again.”

He chuckled and propped himself up on his elbows. “Is that right.”

“Yeah, it is.” She met his eyes, and when he glanced at her lips she leaned in, pressing them to his. A rumble thrummed deep in Mason’s chest, but the kiss was sweeter than the others. Soft, relaxed. It gripped at her heart with a warm fist until she pulled away to stand up.

“Gotta say, I’m not looking forward to the hike back,” she admitted, stripping off her shirt to wipe the silken arousal off her inner thighs, then Mason’s cum off her stomach. She tossed the soiled clothing and pulled her jumpsuit up, zipping it just enough to cover her bra.

“I can give you a ride on my back if you want,” Mason offered.

She blinked at him. “… Really?”

“Yeah, sure.”

“… Okay. I’ll hop on when we get outta the castle.”

Mason wrapped his arms around her from behind as soon as her back was turned. “Mae. Stay in my bed tonight. Please. Just wanna hold you.”

She hesitated before reaching up and back to soothe a hand over his neck. “Okay, big guy. Okay.”

 

 

Mae crawled into bed beside him wearing nothing, burrowing under the blanket and getting comfortable only to have Mason pull her closer to his chest. She grumbled wordlessly in halfhearted disapproval.

“Don’t you go growlin’ at me,” he mumbled with amusement. “Go to sleep.”

She drew lazy circles over his chest until she drifted off.


	10. Chapter 10

Nisha paid a visit in the morning. She wasn’t allowed passed the gate, but she refused to leave until she spoke to Mae. So Mason accompanied her with Icarus and Nova, listening to not-so-subtle threats towards Mae.

“Disciples don’t make empty promises,” Nisha warned. “Piss us off, and I will kill you.”

Mae stared at her for a long, silent moment. Then she thrust her hand out against Nisha’s face to hit her square in the helmet, and Nisha stumbled back. Mae laughed so hard it came out as a wheeze and Mason just barely held back a snort.

“Okay, that answers that question,” Mae sighed through giggles. “You can only see through the gap at the bottom, yeah? Just focus on the ground and… legs. That’s not smart.”

Nisha’s jaw clenched, and then suddenly she grabbed her serrated combat knife and lunged at her. Mae caught her wrist and twisted it, taking the knife when her grip loosened and turning it on her, plunging the blade into her thigh as Icarus and Nova growled viciously. Then Mason grabbed Nisha's bicep and tossed her like she was nothing.

“ _Also_ not smart,” Mae said. “Bye Nisha.” She turned and went back into the Amphitheater, closing the gate on the Raider boss.

“Didn’t think she’d just lunge for ya like that,” Mason said as they walked towards his throne. “You okay, kitten?”

“I think Nisha’s the one that should be asked that.”

The Alpha chuckled. “Yeah, she wasn’t expectin’ that.”

“So are we going off to a park today?”

“Nah, I gotta make sure things with Kiddie Kingdom go smoothly. Moving things in and gettin’ our people settled, that kinda shit. Why don’t you relax today, rest up for tomorrow. We’ll head to the Galactic Zone in the morning.”

She gave a two-fingered salute and walked off towards Jack. “Yessir.”

 

* * *

 

She knew what she was fucking doing. 

Mason stalked about the Park assigning guys to Kiddie Kingdom, but he frequently returned to the Amphitheater to oversee stored furniture, mannequins and lights as they were moved out to the new territory.

And with each return, Mae caught his eye. She’d meet his gaze and bite her bottom lip before quickly looking back to whoever she was talking to. She’d caress her neck with gentle fingers when she could feel him staring, she’d turn away from him, she’d take her hair in her own grip and hold firmly, she’d smile at her conversation partner for no good reason just so he’d catch a flash of pearly white.

She was playing coy, acting like she was so innocent. Just his little kitten spending a day with his Pack.

But she _knew_ what she was fucking doing. Every lip bite tempted him, reminded him of how soft they were against his. Whenever she turned her back to him his eyes would dart to her ass and he imagined whatever she could have under her clothes. Each caress of her neck seemed like an invitation, and her fingertips would brush over the bite mark on the crook of her shoulder that Mason knew was still there. Sometimes she’d put a hand on her shoulder and give it a roll like it was stiff, but Mason noticed how her nails dug into her skin. He remembered how she had clawed into his back, dragged red welts up his skin, blood seeping from the angry lines. Every single movement she did was deliberately teasing him, tempting him. Mae was playing dirty, and his kitten was good at it.

Once the sun went down, she disappeared into the Backstage. Mason wasn’t able to follow her until an hour after, his blood thrumming. He all but charged into his room, slamming the door behind him, and then there she was.

Mae was lounging across the blanket with a comic book in her hands, hair damp from a recent shower and body clad in dark red lace. Her eyes flicked up to meet his, and she had been clawing at his resolve the entire damn day but when the tip of her tongue darted out to lick her lips it was torn to fucking pieces.

Mae placed the comic book aside and turned onto all fours, moving closer to the edge of the bed. “Knees, Alpha,” she ordered, voice leaving her like smooth whiskey but sounding like smoke, warm and husky and suffocating.

Mason took a few steps closer, his chest flaring with heated anger. He was the fucking Alpha, he didn’t take orders from anyone, didn’t kneel or bend or adhere. He chased and took what he wanted. He was the _fucking. Alpha._

And he fell to his knees.

Mae settled on the corner of the bed, bottom lip slipping slowly from between her teeth. Mason leaned forward on his knuckles and crawled over the few feet that was still between them. Mae lifted her leg and he clasped her ankle in his hand, placing a kiss on the bone, then licking up the smooth skin of her calf before letting his lips linger on her knee. When he finally nipped at her inner thigh he hooked his fingers through the band of her underwear, slowly tugging it down. He watched raptly as the lace slid against her skin until it reached her knees, then he grew impatient.

Once bare to him he yanked her closer, getting a surprised gasp before he hooked her legs over his shoulders. He didn’t waste time, holding her hips in his hands and pressing a hard, long lick along her slit. A strangled moan escaped her and she flopped onto her back, making the Alpha grin against her before putting his entire goddamn heart into eating her out.

Mae’s heavy and quick breathing set a fire in his chest, and when the huffs started to carry wavering moans he was incited even more. Then suddenly she gripped his hair and pulled him tight against her, cutting off his air. Something flared inside Mason and he growled, hands moving to dig his fingers into her thighs as they squeezed his head. He fucking devoured her, like he wanted nothing more than to make her come before he died from lack of oxygen.

“Almost,” she moaned, rolling her hips as his tongue dipped inside her, “almost—!”

He felt her come against him and he groaned deep in his tightening chest. Finally she let go of his hair and he pulled back with a gasp, cheek resting against her thigh. A breathy chuckle bubbled from his throat, then he stood and tossed her further up the bed. He kissed his way up her body, stopping at her breasts to take a nipple gently between his teeth, laving his tongue over it.

“Mason,” Mae sighed, delicate fingers raking over the back of his head.

“You taste as sweet as you look, kitten,” he said lowly, gliding his fingers against her warm, silken folds. He ducked his head and nipped at her throat, and she buried her hands in his hair as he unclasped her bra.

Then, a knock at the door.

Mason’s eyes fluttered closed, and he took in a slow breath through his nose. “This better be fuckin’ important or you’re gettin’ fuckin’ shot.”

“Sorry boss,” Shorty’s voice came through, “but one of our guys said Colter asked for Mae. Said it was a social call?”

“Oh no,” she mumbled under her breath, brows furrowed.

Mason felt a strange pang of jealousy in his chest. “You don’t have to go.”

“Yeah I do,” she countered, voice regrettable. “But I’ll be back in a few minutes. I promise. Colter never lasts long.” She kissed his lips twice, lingering with the second before he allowed her to push him off.

Mason watched her dress, not bothering to put her underwear on. _Shouldn’t be this pissed. Ain’t like she’s mine._

She blew him a kiss, then headed out the door.

 

  
Mae was back in fifteen minutes. She slammed the door and yanked off her clothes like they were on fire and leapt on him, kissing him so wildly it had him bolting up and pulling her onto his lap to grind her against him.

“Y’miss me?” he asked against her lips.

“Almost unbearably so,” she responded, and it sounded so fucking genuine. “Can we pick up where we left off?”

“That was the plan right?”

She smiled. “Good. Strip.”

He grinned wolfishly and stood to do as she said, and as soon as he was back on the bed she straddled him. When he started to sit up she shoved him down by his shoulders.

“Down boy,” she ordered. “No touching.”

“Oh, you ain’t fuckin’ serious—“

Her hand went to his throat. “Deadly. Either this way or not at all, Alpha.”

He glared up at her and she bit her lip around a smile, a peak of white against luscious purple. She was so fucking beautiful, like a goddamn miracle sitting on top of him and right now she was _his_.

And she was making him hers. Roaming her hands over his chest like she was trying memorize every line, how every inch of skin felt under her fingertips. Then she was lining herself up and sinking down, and fuck she took him so perfectly, was so fucking wet for him.

Mason wanted to touch her, wanted to take handfuls of her but he just twisted the blanket in his fists because there was no way he was going to risk having this end. She started off slow, just slow rolls of her hips as she got used to him. Her dark brows were furrowed over closed eyes, mutfruit-colored lips parted to let heavy breaths passed and the ends of her hair tickled her shoulders as she rocked. Then her eyes fluttered open to stare down at him and suddenly she clenched around his cock.

If the sight of him laying under her had that much of an effect, it made the humiliation of submitting to her worth it.

Mae grew more enthusiastic, bounced and twisted as she started to ride him faster, and she roamed her own hands up her body, buried her fingers in the roots of her hair and fisted the soft strands.

“You want hands on you, just let me fuckin’ touch you,” Mason piped up.

“Fuck,” Mae sighed, as if his voice had already chipped at her resolve, but she shook her head, hair bouncing around.

Mason let his head fall back and he bucked up against her, only to have her push him back down with a strong bounce.

“Stay,” she ordered. “Beg me.”

“C’mon, kitten, you can’t hold out much—“

“Oh, I can’t?” She sank down and stopped, just sat there looking so damn pleased with herself, an eyebrow cocked. So Mason bucked into her again, getting a pleasured gasp from her but also a hand to his neck, nails digging around his windpipe.

“Remember what Nova did to her Alpha?”

“What, you gonna open my throat?”

“I’m ready to.” She leaned closer and soothed her fingertips over the crescent dents her nails made. “C’mon, baby. Beg for me.”

So fucking demeaning but it made his cock twitch inside her, hearing the pet name carried on the warm smoke of her voice.

“C’mere, kitten,” he croaked, trying one more time to keep what remaining dignity he had.

She cocked a brow.

“Wanna touch you. Want you closer.” Her eyelids fluttered, but she still didn’t move. “Fuck, please! Needa touch you, right fuckin’ now. _Please_.”

She smiled wide and proud. “Good boy.” She took his jaw in her hand and leaned forward, capturing his lips in a full, searing kiss. He was on her in an instant, grabbing her ass with one hand and using his tight grip to rock her body forward while his other hand roamed over her back. He started to control her pace but then her hand was back to his throat again.

“Touch me, don’t control me,” she told him, taking over for him.

“Gotta give me something, kitten.”

“Want you to come inside me.” Her palm was replaced with the gentle presence of her teeth, tongue laving over his adam’s apple. “That sound good to you, Alpha?”

He answered her with a slow, consuming kiss. It remained that way even when her pace grew quicker, her ass bouncing off his thighs. She bowed her head against his chest, breath hot on his skin and lips brushing against him every other moment.

Mason buried a hand in her hair, surprised by how much he liked watching her writhe on top of him. “That’s it, kitten. Fuck, that’s it.”

She huffed out a frayed laugh. “Even like this, you find a way to…” She kissed his chest. “You really are an Alpha.” She sat up and through her head back, looking all sorts of beautiful and tempting as she bounced on top of him. “Oh, _Mason_. Mason!”

He arched up into her as she came, couldn’t stop himself but she didn’t seem to mind. She let him move with her, let him chase her orgasm to bring his own, and then he was coming inside of her, groaning low in his chest at the lewd and nearly relieved whimper that escaped her throat.

After she caught her breath he watched her slide off of him to flop down onto the mattress.

“Wasn’t so bad, was it, big guy.”

He rolled over and answered with a languid kiss. “You aren’t worried about…?” His eyes darted down, then back to meet hers.

“Got Institute chems that I can take. You don’t need to worry.”

He nodded, raked his fingers through the roots of her hair. He wasn’t used to intimate shit but she seemed to like it. If it was for her, he’d do it.

And _that_ was a fucking disturbing thought. Or, it should've been.

They laid there for a moment, just resting in each other’s gaze. Then Mae broke the silence.

“Right,” she huffed, guiding him onto his back and straddling him. “Again.”

Mason chuckled and welcomed the kiss she leaned down to give him.

 

* * *

 

Mae woke up with Mason’s head on her ribs, his arms wrapped securely around her waist as he slept beside her. She raked her fingers through his hair, keeping her eyes closed until she felt him stir.

“Mornin’, kitten,” he mumbled, voice heavy with sleep. She hummed in response, and Mason rolled to rest his torso between her legs, nipping affectionately at one of her lower ribs.

_Cig lying in bed with her tucked against him, her head on his shoulder as he took a drag from his cigarette, both their gazes on the rain falling outside of the window._

She forced the thought away and willed her chest to loosen. “Needa take a shower,” she told him, not moving. “Then we’ll head to Galactic Zone.”

“You still givin’ it to the Operators?”

“Mhm.” She patted his shoulder. “Up.”

He grumbled but did as she said, and she placed a quick kiss on his lips before bouncing off the bed.


	11. Chapter 11

Mason hit yet another eyebot out of the air with his sledgehammer, sending it crashing into the window of the Starport. Mae strode to the control panel, looking like she was relieved to find a terminal. He guessed it was familiar territory.

“Says we need star cores to get the place up and running,” she informed after hacking into the system. “30 of them.”

“Fuck,” Mason sighed.

“No worries, I think I can hack through that. Make the robots docile, too. Just give me a couple minutes.”

He hummed fondly. “There anything you can’t do?”

“No,” she answered confidently with a smile. Her delicate fingers worked away for a short while, then she straightened up. “Okay, that should do it.” She flipped a few switches and the park’s lights and rides came to life. “Says here that three of the robots are frenzied, so we’ll have to watch out.”

“Frenzied?”

“Too damaged from the years to accept any commands from the terminal. Two Nuka machines and a Novatron.”

“All right.” He shouldered his sledgehammer. “Let’s find ‘em.”

 

  
After 30 minutes spent looking for all three, only the modified assaultron was left. They made their way to the last section of the park they hadn’t covered - the theater. Sure enough, one of the two assaultrons standing outside booted up and announced its lock on targets.

Mae shot it with her laser pistol, but the robot had an extra layer of protective steel on its body. Surprised, she stood there for a moment, giving the machine time to boot up its own and much deadlier laser.

Mason didn’t need to give it much thought - he bolted for her and tackled her to the ground, the laser cutting a few strands of hair on the back of his head. They landed with Mason’s hand protectively cradling Mae’s head, his knuckles hitting the concrete with enough impact to have pain shoot through his entire hand.

The assaultron stomped towards them with a serrated blade, and he waited until it was close enough to hit it with his shotgun. The first blast shattered the plating on its head, and the second blew apart its face.

“You okay?” he asked Mae, turning to see her eyes so wide and fear-stricken it made his blood run cold. “Mae?”

Her hands lashed out to his face, sliding to the back of his head to grip his hair tight enough to make it sting. “You…?”

“I’m fine,” he assured. Then abruptly she shoved his chest, scrambling out from under him.

“You fucking idiot,” she snarled. “Why the fuck would you do that?!”

His brows furrowed. “The hell’s up with you? I just saved your sweet ass from gettin’ a hole in your head.”

“I didn’t ask you to.”

“Most people would say thanks and move on.”

“Yeah, when they’re grateful. I’m not grateful, I’m pissed the fuck off you absolute _shithead_.”

Mason should have been angry, should have told her not to speak to him that way. If anyone else talked to him like that he’d break their arms, but for some reason when it was Mae, he just felt like a kicked puppy. She started pacing, eyes still wide. “Talk to me, kitten.”

She stopped, eyes dark and shining with unshed tears. “I…” she struggled, and he waited. “I just don’t want you to get hurt, much less die, because of me.”

He knew there was something else troubling her. Something that ripped at her, clawed through her no matter how hard she tried to keep it back. “Mae—“

“I need… I need to run. Need to think. I’ll meet you back at the Amphitheater.”

Mason opened his mouth, but with a hop and a skip Mae was off, sprinting out of sight.

 

* * *

 

Mae ran until her lungs were burning, until she could barely feel her legs and just felt them carrying her. Until Cig’s voice stopped repeating in her mind. _Just keep runnin’, angel._

She was heading for Nuka World now, eyes locked on the red and orange lights. Her throat burned from the air she was desperately taking in, no longer able to keep it labored, her cheeks and ears were wind-chilled and her pace was faltering.

3 minutes later and she was scaling the Amphitheater’s wall, her legs refusing to just quit. She faltered on her landing, catching herself with her hands as she stumbled forward. She laid down on her back and stared at the night sky as her lungs pulled in desperate gulps of air, the subconscious task laborious in itself.

“Princess?”

“You okay, Mae?”

Shorty and Jack hovered into view, and she felt her arms nudged by a wet nose. “Fine,” she panted. “Gimme a… give me a minute.”

“Need some water or somethin’?” Shorty asked.

“Water’s good.” He disappeared but Jack remained. “I’m okay, go on about your business.”

the Raider hesitated, but obeyed. A few moments passed, then Mae breathed out a laugh. _Haven’t ran like that in… too long._

“Here baby,” Shorty said, offering her a can of purified water. She gratefully swallowed it down her burning throat, then let her head gently thump back down.

“Thanks. I’m just gonna lay her for a bit.”

“Sure, honey. Whatever you want.”


	12. Chapter 12

A bit turned out to be an hour. An hour of collecting her thoughts instead of running from them, of gazing at the stars and once again admiring how amazingly real they were. Not the artificial ones in the Institute that appeared after 8pm on the dot, panels turning in a wave of dotting lights.

She coiled her legs back and thrust them forward to rock herself up, then got to her feet and retreaded to Backstage.

 

Mason was laying in bed, hands rubbing at his face for a moment before he sat up at the door’s creaking. “Mae.”

She felt guilt wash in her chest, and she closed the door to strip off her clothes in record speed before crawling on top of him. “I’m sorry,” she mumbled, kissing him with her palm to his cheek. “Shouldn’t have snapped at you like that. It wasn’t fair of me.”

“Don’t you go apologizin’,” he responded. “Just tell me what’s bitin’ you.”

“Later.” She kissed him again. “Want you now.” Another kiss, more needy. “Everything you can give me.” The next had his hands coming up to roam her back, unclasping her bra. “Want you to show me why you’re the Alpha.” She pulled back and saw the question on his face: _Are you sure?_

She straightened up and took his hands to place them on her hips, and his fingers hooked under the band of her underwear. “Wanted this since I first met you. But like you said…” He tugged the underwear down slowly. “Too stubborn.”

“Ain’t gonna go easy on you,” he told her, voice low and full of promise as he sat up.

“Don’t want you to.” She saw the final warning in his eyes and shoved his shoulder. “C’mon!”

It happened so quickly she wasn’t able to keep up - positioned on all fours with her underwear still around her thighs, his cock gliding against her folds and then he was hitting home.

“Already so fucking wet,” he growled, taking her hair in his fist and then thrusting, hard and mercilessly, the bed jouncing from the momentum. Mae let out a nearly pained noise of relief. “This what you want, kitten? Huh?”

Arousal spiked through her, forcing a pathetic whimper out of her. “Fuck— yeah…,“ she moaned, voice frayed. Fuck she had missed this, giving herself over to someone, letting them take control, pounding the pleasure into her with a perfect hint of pain.

She's had men who fucked her hard just for their own release, but thankfully Mason wasn’t one of those men. Every thrust hit that sweet spot inside her, the angle was fucking perfect and he put his entire body into it - his pace wasn’t just overeager snaps of his hips.

She looked over his shoulder at him, a strangled moan working from her throat at the sight. He braced his hand on the headboard and hovered over her, tugging a curve into her neck by her hair.

“You fuckin’ kill me, y’know that?” he said over her sounds of pleasure. “So goddamn beautiful.”

“ _Mason_.”

“Louder. Let the whole Pack hear you.” She obeyed, and he ground his hips against her ass, getting a lewd moan in return. “C’mon kitten, c’mon.”

she bowed her head and her lips formed around a silent scream as she came around him, her arms giving way and face falling against the pillow.

“Christ, Mae, you come so fuckin’ hard,” Mason growled. “It’s fuckin’ paradise inside you.”

He didn’t give her a break, just flipped her over like she was nothing and hooked her legs on his arms, thrusting into her again and resuming his animalistic pace. Mae’s hands gripped the edge of the mattress above her head, and the Alpha leaned closer, bending her legs so they were dangling close to her torso and he wrapped a hand around her throat.

Mae whimpered and nodded her thanks, tears pricking her eyes. She’s wanted this for too fucking long, to have the Alpha give her everything he’s got, to get his hand around her neck and feel her heartbeat under his palm, the vibration of her moans and cries, bend and stretch her damn near breaking. He was dominating but paying attention to every little bit of her, every tremble and jolt and twitch, and formulating to it.

His thumb soothed over her jawline, his fingers flexed and he groaned deep in his chest. Mae felt it rumble against her own.

“Mason,” she whimpered, hands raking through his hair.

“Love it when you say my name,” he admitted, other hand snaking between them to circle his fingers around her clit. “No one says it like you.”

Mae felt like she was going to pass out, the pleasure and Mason’s energy almost too much but she fucking loved it, wouldn’t really mind if he actually fucked her into unconsciousness. 

He let go of her throat and let her gasp in a breath before capturing her lips in a kiss, searing and consuming as heat coiled inside her again. In an act of mercy he slowed his thrusts to a deep roll of his hips, moved his lips to her neck and laved his tongue over her strong, frantic pulse. His teeth clamped down and she came, back arching against him and hands fisting the blanket as she screamed his name, desperate and pleasure-addled.

Mason buried himself inside her, let her orgasm bring him towards his own and he pumped his hips as he spilled inside her.

He pulled out and flopped next to her, pulling her to his chest and she groaned tiredly in disapproval, her entire body feeling too limp to be moved.

“Yeah yeah,” he mumbled, ignoring the halfhearted protest with a lazy smile.

 

* * *

 

Mason waited for her breath to be slow and steady again before speaking. “Wanna tell me yet?” He couldn’t let what had happened go, needed to know why his kitten had scratched and bitten so viciously after he had just saved her from having her head melted.

Mae sighed, readjusting her head on his shoulder, her silken hair tickling his skin before blanketing over him. “Mind getting the short version?”

“Yeah. Wanna understand.”

Again she sighed, this time in defeat. “… First time I came to the Commonwealth was… about 4 years ago. Fell in love with it instantly. That night I went to a bar in Goodneighbor. You know it?”

“Yeah. Third Rail?”

“Mhm. Got into a bar fight with this big guy, don’t even remember what it was about. Well, after I hooked him in the jaw he dragged me up to the Hotel Rexford and…” She made a loose gesture with her hand. “It was my first time, first kiss even. He was rough, wrapped his hand around my neck and I loved it. It felt so… raw, so exciting and alive. Here I was, fucking some dirty wastelander in this grimy hotel room after living twenty two years in a pristine and fucking boring utopia, untouched by the wasteland and now having it rocking my body into a filthy mattress. It stormed right after, and that’s when I fell in love with the rain. Thought it would be the last time we’d see each other. Just one amazing night. Didn't even tell each other our names."

She paused, he waited. "Well, about two weeks later we met again. Same thing, no name basis. Then it happened again, and again. I start callin’ him Cig ‘cause he smoked like a fucking chimney, he called me all the pet names under the sun, but went with angel the most. Then it’s almost two years later. Still no names, always in that filthy hotel room. But there’s… something there. Something we didn’t want, something we tried to avoid. We just wanted casual hookups. but that’s not how it turned out.”

She paused again, and Mason felt unease tighten his chest. “One night, some chem dealer confronted me ‘cause I stole some caps. Fa… my boss wasn’t paying me in wasteland currency obviously, so that’s usually what I did to get caps. This was… I think the third time he’s come to me. Got impatient, so he pulled a gun. Submachine gun. Cig took the bullets for me. Finally told me his name, laying there on the Rexford’s hallway floor. I told him mine. Wanted to help him, fuck I really did, but he said it would be too late, and I’d be damned if I let him die without me by his side. So... that’s what he did.”

Mason felt tears drop on his skin. “Shit, Mae, I didn’t… I’m s—“

“Don’t,” she told him sternly. “I fucking hate when people do that. You tell ‘em you lost someone and the sorry’s bubble out of ‘em like puke. You have nothing to be sorry for, I don’t need to be pitied.”

“I ain’t pitying you. I just wish that you didn’t have to go through that.”

“So don’t make me go through it again. Mason…” She sat up, met his eyes. Her irises were darkened by tears, shining so fucking beautifully but it fucking _hurt_. “I don’t know how you feel, I don’t know how you see… whatever this is, but to me it’s something. I don’t wanna lose you, and definitely not like that. I’d rather—“

“Don’t. Don’t you fuckin’ say it.” He took her jaw in his grip, kept her eyes on his. His voice came out quiet, almost inaudible. “… Somethin’ to me, too. Ain’t sure what exactly, but…”

She huffed out a laugh, not quite smiling. “Good. Me neither.”

He soothed his thumb over her jawline. “I just know that I don’t want you to be with anyone else. Want you to myself.”

She swallowed. “Colter…”

“Includes him.”

“I can’t just—“

“We’ll figure somethin’ out, Mae. After this whole business with the parks. We’ll figure somethin’ out.”

She kissed him, full, slow and sweet, tugging at his heartstrings and he felt so weak because of it. But it was Mae, and because it was Mae he was all right with it. Because she didn’t see him as just the Alpha. He was something more to her. And after so long it was such a fucking relief to be _something_. Not just the fearful leader of the Pack. To her he was Mason, had been Mason from the very beginning.

She curled into him, rested her head back on his shoulder, hair fanned out on his skin and he held her tight.

_We’ll figure it out._


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> warning: this chapter contains graphic depictions of injuries to both an animal and a person - no death, but I thought I'd mention it just in case.

Mae was woken up by suddenly being flipped onto her side when Mason bolted up.

“Shit, sorry,” he told her, only sparing her a glance before calling towards the door. “What’s wrong?”

“Mae needs to come out here,” Shorty’s voice answered. Mae blinked rapidly, realizing he must have called in a few moments ago without waking her. “It’s Icarus, he’s…”

She flew off the bed and yanked on her dresslike sweatshirt, her arms not even through the sleeves before she was running out of Backstage. Icarus was flailing on the ground in a pool of blood in front of the gate, Nova restlessly pacing near him and a Disciple being restrained by two Pack members.

“Mae—“ she pushed passed Jack and rushed over to her mutt, but Nova growled in warning.

“It’s just me, okay?” she assured. She looked passed her and saw one of his front legs had been cut completely off, and he was struggling to stand because his other had been broken. “Oh my god.”

Mason came up behind her, pulling on his tank top. “Mae, what— _shit_.”

She shoved his bicep. “Go get my pack. Now!” He sprinted off, and she crouched down. “Nova, away. Go.”

The white dog growled, but warily did as she said. Mae was by his side in an instant, holding him still. “It’s okay, shh, shh. I know boy, I know. Just hold on, okay?” She closed her eyes against the whines of pain that made her teeth hurt, made her entire body feel like it would shatter if someone touched her.

She heard Mason beside her and reached for her pack, finding two Institute chems. She injected the one meant to heal him first, then the second to knock him out. She waited until he fell into a deep sleep, then stood up with tears still streaming from her eyes.

“We thought you’d wanna deal with ‘er,” Shorty mumbled, offering the Disciple to her.

“Gimme a gun.”

Mason stepped in. “Mae, you can’t kill 'er in here—“

“Oh, I’m not gonna kill ‘er.” Someone slapped a pistol into her expecting hand. “But she’s gonna wish I would.” With that she sent a bullet into the woman’s kneecap, and she crumpled to the ground with a shriek of pain. Mae stood over her and lifted her foot, then stomped her heel down on the Raider’s mouth, knocking her front teeth loose, then out with another stomp. She kicked her gut three times, then yanked off the woman’s helmet to gouge one of her eyes. Mae was hardened against her cries of agony.

“Eye for an eye,” she said. “Arm for a leg.” She gestured to Nova and tapped the Raider’s bicep, and her mutt lunged forward immediately, ripping and tearing while Mae held the victim still until finally her arm was severed.

Mae stood up, landing one more kick to the woman’s side. “You crawl back to Nisha and tell her she’s not getting a goddamn thing now.”

“It was just a dog,” the Disciple gurgled.

Mae gripped her throat, digging her nails in. “He's _my_ dog. Now get out of here before I really lose my temper.”

The Raider scrambled away just as the guard outside was rousing from being knocked out.

“Mae?” Mason spoke up. “You okay?”

She looked up at him, her tears blurring her vision. “He’s my dog, Mason!” she cried pathetically.

“I know, sweetheart. What do you wanna do with ‘im? He can’t live like that.”

She thought for a moment. “I need to get him into the workshop.”

There was uncertainty in his eyes, but the Alpha nodded and went to pick him up. Nova snapped, and Mae held her back so Mason could heft the larger dog in his arms.

Mae shouldered her pack and followed him into Backstage with Nova at her heels, stopping into their room to retrieve her work pack. Mason set Icarus down on the table. “Give me a few hours alone, big guy,” she told him, putting her hair up while Nova settled onto the ground to wait for her Alpha.

“Sure. Whatever you need.”

 

* * *

 

Mason gathered everyone to his throne, standing in front of it. “Anyone wanna tell me how the fuck she managed to get in here in the first place?”

“She knocked me out from behind, boss,” the guard spoke up nervously.

“Even with that bein' the case, someone should’ve been posted on the inside, too. She shouldn’t have been able to get near any of ours, even the mutts, not even the fuckin’ molerats. There should’ve been six of you on ‘er before she got more than a foot inside.”

“We thought she was let in,” someone answered. “Why would she be in here in the first place if that wasn’t it?”

Mason raked his fingers through the roots of his hair in frustration. “… From here on, any Disciple shows up here, even if she’s let in, you keep ‘er still until I see ‘er. She say why she went after Icarus in the first place?”

“Nisha knew he was one of Mae’s. The bitch Mae beat down said it was a warning.”

He clenched his jaw. “… All right. Keep that from Mae. She hears that and she’ll start a fuckin’ war.”

“That’s gonna happen anyway if she doesn’t give ‘em at least one park,” a member piped up.

Mason sighed. “I know. I’ll talk to her once she calms down.”

“So… is she…?”

He stared down the man who spoke. “Is she what.”

“Well… don’t mean to pry into your business, boss, but… is she your girl now? Just wanna know if we’ll be takin’ orders from ‘er or somethin’.”

That gave him pause. “… Yeah. Yeah, she’s mine. But I’m still Alpha, and you still get your orders from me. But you’ll give Mae your respect, am I clear?”

They agreed in unison, and he dismissed them.

 

* * *

 

Mae wiped the sheen from her brow, a stray thought crossing of how cliche it was to be sweating while working on something so tedious. But after nine hours and two knockout chems later she was finally done.

She cracked smelling salts under his nose and held him still as he woke with a start.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay,” she soothed, scratching behind his ear. Nova stood from her sleeping spot and propped her front legs up on the table, sniffing at Icarus’s muzzle, blood still staining hers.

“Up, boy,” she ordered Icarus, and she helped him stand. He startled himself and scrambled back, not expecting the prosthetic metal leg she had built him. “S’okay. It’s good as new. Just take it slow. Let’s see if you can hop off the table, hm? C’mon.”

She kept a hold on him as he jumped down to the floor, losing his balance on the landing but quickly correcting himself with some help. “There you go! Good boy!” She closed her eyes and crinkled her nose as he licked her face gratefully. “You’re welcome, boy.” She scratched behind both his ears. “I’m sorry. I wish I was out there to help you. Maybe I could’ve stopped this.” She straightened up and rested her hand on his head. “Try walking, c’mon.”

The mutt instinctively tried to put less weight on his new leg, but by the time they reached the door to outside he had already gotten the hang of it. Mae opened the door for him and Nova accompanied him outside, staying close by his side as he walked carefully. Mae stayed behind them, a proud smile on her face. She did a pretty all right job, considering she didn’t have all the amenities of the Institute. The leg was functional, moved smoothly, and obeyed easily and instantly. She had even given him artificial claws and padded the bottom of the paw.

She followed them to their open den near Mason’s throne, and the Alpha looked at Icarus with furrowed brows. “You build that?” he questioned.

“Impressive, right?” she said. “He should be good as new as soon as he gets used to it. I just hope he doesn’t start gnawing at it. He’s a smart dog, so I think he understands what it is."

Mason stared at her for a moment, then crooked a finger at her. Mae’s shoulders slumped and she wandered over to him, letting him pull her onto his lap so she could lay across him, draping her legs over the arm of his throne.

“You doing okay?” he asked her.

She kept her eyes on the night sky, fairy lights glowing in peripheral view. “Better than earlier. I’m just glad he’s alive… Is this my fault? Did I piss off Nisha?”

“Ain’t your fault, kitten.”

She glanced at him, saw the guard in his eyes. “What aren’t you telling me?”

“Huh? Nothin’.”

“Don’t lie to me.”

He sighed. “… Nisha said this was a warning.”

Mae bolted up and stood, but Mason wrapped an arm around her and lifted her. Her legs kicked out wildly as she tried to get away, and it would have been comical if she wasn’t so pissed.

“Mae, take it easy.”

“I’ll give her a fucking _warning_ ,” she snarled, the last word coming out almost guttural.

“Whatever you’re thinking of doing, it ain’t gonna help.”

She stopped squirming and put her down. She paced back and forth a few feet, her body almost too small to contain the amount of anger coursing through her.

“All right,” Mason sighed suddenly, then picked her up and tossed her over his shoulder. “You can’t rein in that temper of yours, I’ll fuck it outta you.”

She squirmed on his shoulder, even though that’s exactly what she wanted. She needed to be overpowered right now.

As soon as the bedroom door closed behind them Mason put her down and quickly pulled her sweatshirt off, tossing it over his shoulder before lifting her up again so her legs wrapped around his hips.

“Now,” she croaked. “Now.”

“You wet enough?”

“I don’t care! C’mon!” She shoved his chest and he retaliated by slamming her hard against the door. He lined himself up and thrust inside her despite the resistance, and she clawed at his shoulders. “C’mon, c’mon.”

He hooked her legs over his forearms so her thighs were pressed beside her, and he started a rough and unmerciful pace.

Mae shoved her hands against his chest while at the same time meeting his hard thrusts, savoring the burn and stretch. She clawed at him, pounded him with her fists, snarled and growled as he fucked her hard. His hand went to her neck, finger tight under her jawline.

“That’s it, kitten,” he thrummed. “Let it out. I can take it.” 

Mae gritted her teeth and went for his throat in return, only to have her wrist pinned next to her head as he fucked her harder. It was too rough now, it hurt and she could barely breathe with the grip he had - it was exactly what she needed, what she wanted. She locked her ankles together so she could stay suspended without Mason’s support, both his hands occupied.

A flare of anger, and she used her free hand to claw at his jaw. Mason let out a feral growl and pulled her off the wall to toss her onto the bed, and he was on her before she could position herself. He kept her on her side and angled her leg up so he could thrust into her again. She kept crying out, lips parted wide and she could feel it as he fucked the anger out of her. Just to be stubborn she kicked him square in the chest and sent him stumbling back. Her triumphant smile disappeared as soon as Mason’s wolfish grin spread across his face, eyes scanning over her.

“All right,” he said, picking up his pants and tank top. “Gonna have to do something about that.”

She scrambled away but he caught her ankle and dragged her closer, tying her ankles together with his pants then flipping her over and securing her hands behind her back with his tank top. He did this easily even as she resisted, though she wasn’t particularly upset about this development.

Mason flipped her over again and his fingers went to her cunt as he hovered over, and in moments he had her eyes screwed shut, brows furrowed and her mouth gaping. She writhed desperately but Mason held her legs down with his knee, and his free hand kept her upper body secure by a hold on her neck.

Mae felt like she was going to pass out from the onslaught of pleasure, his fingers working her in a way that should have been fucking impossible. Every cry and whimper caught in her throat under Mason’s palm. Then he leaned down and took a nipple in his mouth, laving his tongue over the taut peak.

“Baby,” she managed to breathe out, arching against his mouth. She had never thought of calling him that, but she’s glad it bubbled out of her because in return a melting groan hit her ears, passed the pounding of her own pulse.

When she came, Mason loosened his grip on her neck and frayed rapid fire moans huffed out of her as she tried to rock into his fingers, but she couldn’t move - and for some reason the frustration of it just spiked more arousal through her.

Not even a second after the waves of intense pleasure dyed she needed more. She wanted him until she was a useless pile on the bed. “Want your cock,” she begged, cheeks flushing even more. “Mason, _please_.”

She saw his eyes start to roll back before his eyelids fluttered closed. “Fuck, Mae.” He flipped her over, and when she tucked her legs to prop her ass up he only forced her flat again, instead pressing his body on top of hers and thrusting into her with a sweep of his hips.

Moans poured from her as he pressed her into the mattress with each downswing, the bed jouncing with his thrusts. Her arms were trapped between her back and Mason’s chest and his forearms were braced beside her head, one of his hands tangled in her hair with a tight grip.

“This what you wanted, kitten?” he thrummed, not sounding even remotely exerted.

“Yes,” she breathed. “Yes, yes, yesyesyes!”

Her breath caught when she came again and Mason stilled for a moment until she stopped pulsing around him, then he lifted his chest off her and went harder, and Mae heard a part of the boxspring break underneath the mattress, sending another spike of intense arousal through her. This was almost too much but she fucking loved it, would beg for hours just for a minute of it, but thankfully Mason’s stamina allowed for more.

The leg of the bed snapped and they slanted back. “Don’t stop,” Mae pleaded immediately.

“Wouldn’t fuckin’ dream of it, kitten,” Mason responded, his thrusts not even faltering. He licked at the shell of her ear then took it between his teeth to tug gently.

After minutes flashed by Mae started to think she really was going to be fucked unconscious, and when her third orgasm hit her she could’ve sworn she actually blacked out for a moment.

“Gonna come, kitten,” Mason croaked as she clenched around him. “Fuck, I’m…” His hips rolled and he nipped at her shoulder blade, pumping his cum deep inside her. 

“Holy shit, Mason,” Mae breathed as he untied her moments later. “I needed that.”

“Any time, sweetheart,” he smiled, and Mae was silently happy to notice he was a bit breathless now himself. She let her eyes close and listened as Mason got off the bed, but they snapped open when she felt the mattress moving. She propped herself up on shaking arms to look over her shoulder. “What’re you doing?”

“Would be annoying as shit to sleep on an angle,” he answered, pushing half the mattress off the boxspring before rounding it to the other side and pulling the other half off.

“Feelin’ better?” he mumbled as he flopped back down next to her.

“Ask me that tomorrow morning when we have to head to Dry Rock.”

He grinned. “Oh you’re gonna fuckin’ hate me.”

“Hm. Well, until then…” She shifted closer to him and he immediately welcomed her into the crook of his arm, curling her against his body.

Just then Mae felt an almost overwhelming fondness wash through her, tightening her chest and stuffing a lump into her throat. She kissed him, slow and sweet, her stomach fluttering when he gently brushed his fingers over the small of her back while his other hand held the side of her head. When they parted she studied his face and noticed the slightest dusting of freckles over the bridge of his nose and near the inner corners of his eyes.

"What's that smile for," he asked warily.

"You've got freckles."

He rolled his eyes. "Fuck. I know I do. Almost scarred my face up trying to scrub them off."

"I like them." Mae gently shoved at his shoulder to roll him onto his back, then straddled his thighs. She smoothed her hands over his chest, eyes darting over the various scars that marred his skin. She traced over each one gently with her thumb, then took one of his hands and brushed his knuckles. The skin over them was permanently pinkish and raw from the many fistfights he had been in. She lifted his hand and kissed each knuckle.

"Mae."

She glanced at his face and was struck by the sudden and unexpected vulnerability in his eyes. She smiled down at him and soothed a hand over his jawline, then noticed a thin white scar over a cord of muscle in his neck. Her brows furrowed and she brushed her fingertips over it.

"Someone snuck up on me with a combat knife," he explained. "Cut pretty deep but I threw them off in time."

Mae nodded, still staring at the scar. To think that someone came so close to killing her Alpha...

She leaned down and kissed it, then slipped down his body to take him in her hand, slowly and firmly stroking until he was hard again then taking him in her mouth. She went slow and fully focused, barely registering his fingers flexing in her hair.

"Mae," he croaked, rolling his hips in the slightest way, and she hummed around him. "Christ, that's amazing."

When he came she swallowed him down, throat clenching around the head of his cock, then licked him clean and crawled back up his body.

"What was that for," he mumbled with a lazy smile as Mae tucked her head under his chin.

"Nothin'. Just... for you."

He chuckled quietly. "So fuckin' sweet."

 

They ended up talking for most of the night about nothing in particular, just enjoying each other's company and body warmth. When they finally drifted off to sleep, Mae had an arm and a leg draped over Mason's torso, his arm curved over her back to keep her close.


	14. Chapter 14

“Fuckin’ hate you,” Mae grumbled as Mason got dressed, a sharp ache between her thighs.

“Sorry kitten,” he responded, holding back the smirk that showed in his voice.

Mae grabbed one of the pillows and threw it at the back of his head, and he flinched in surprise. She snorted, and he turned around.

“You think that’s funny, huh,” he said catching her ankle as she tried to scramble away, and she let out a shrieking giggle as he dragged her to the foot of the mattress. He flipped her over and bit her ass hard.

“Ow!” The yelp trailed into another giggle as he trailed a long lick up her spine to nip at the skin over her shoulder blade.

“C’mon, we should get moving,” he mumbled.

“Mm. I’ll meet you outside. Gotta take a shower.”

He sighed. “You and your showers. Fine, just hurry up.”

“I’m gonna take my fuckin’ time and you’re not gonna be a bitch about it,” she shot back, holding back a smirk when his eyes widened.

“Jesus,” he chuckled. “All right, just put the claws away.” 

 

* * *

 

Mason stood from his throne when Gage appeared. “Porter,” he greeted.

“Mason. You got some free time today? I’m gettin’ all the bosses together to discuss some business.”

“What kind of business we talkin’ here?”

“Kind that’ll solve that big problem we’ve all been sore over. Mags and Nisha have already agreed.”

“You got a time?”

“Around 10pm, we’re clearin’ out the cafe.”

“… All right. I’ll be there.”

“Good. Bring Mae along.”

His brows furrowed, and he squared his shoulders. “What’s this got to do with her?”

“You’ll see.”

Mason shifted his weight. “… I don’t think that’s such a good idea. Her and Nisha got a real bone to pick with each other. That crazy bitch sent someone after one of Mae’s mutts, cut his leg off.”

“Shit, no kiddin?”  
  
“Yeah, so Mae beat the culprit damn near death, got her other dog to tear her arm off.”

Gage cringed with a jerk his head. “Fuck. That’s gonna put some tension in the room, huh? Not to mention it’s gonna complicate things.”

Mason paused. “What’s goin’ on, Porter.”

“Just… bring ‘er along. Keep her on a tight leash.”

“There ain’t no puttin’ a leash on Mae. But I’ll try to keep her temper down.”

Gage nodded. “See you tonight.”

“Mason?” Mae called, making her way over as she shrugged on her leather jacket.

“And this must be the lady I’ve heard so much about,” Gage smiled, a charming curl of his lips that made Mason suddenly want to knock his teeth out. “Porter Gage.”

“Mae Sullivan,” she introduced with a grin of her own. Mason’s brows furrowed as he realized he hadn’t known Mae’s full name until now. “A pleasure.”

“Pleasure’s mine. A helluva thing you’ve been doin’, clearing out the parks for us.”

“Can’t take all the credit. The Alpha here has been helping me.”

“Gage wants us to meet with the other gang leaders tonight,” Mason informed.

“Me too?”

“Yeah, and I don’t want you goin’ right for Nisha as soon as you see her.”

“Better not bring me along then, ‘cause if I see that bitch again I’m opening her throat with my own teeth.”

“Damn, woman,” Gage mumbled.

“She went after one of mine. That shit doesn’t fly with me.”

As if on cue Icarus stalked over, circling behind Mae to stand beside her.

“I’m guessing that’s him,” Gage said, and his eyes darted to Nova's as she joined them. “And that’s—“

“The one who tore her _fucking_ arm off,” Mae interrupted, voice icy.

“Still want her to join us?” Mason asked.

Gage shifted his weight. “… Yeah. Never liked Nisha anyway.” With that he walked off, leaving both Mason and Mae slightly confused.

“Try to keep control later, all right, kitten?” Mason requested.

She glanced away for a moment. “… For you, okay. But you better hope she doesn’t say something to piss me off.”

 _Which is highly fuckin’ likely._ “You ready to head for Dry Rock?”

 

* * *

 

 Mae all but kicked the door to the cafe open, striding in with Bloodworm guts covering every inch of her.

“Easy, easy,” Mason said, taking her arm in his grip. She halfheartedly tried to shrug him off but he didn’t budge.

“Long day?” Gage asked, seated at one of the tables with Mags and William.

“Where’s Nisha?” Mae questioned.

He exchanged a glance with Mags, and she graciously nodded. William did the same with a quick jerk of his head, then Gage turned back to Mae and Mason. “So here’s the lowdown. Mae, you’ve done in a few days what Colter’s failed to do with a year. You’re willing to bleed for your people, and your loyalty’s at a level where you get a woman’s arm ripped off just for hurtin’ a mutt—“ he put his hand up when she opened her mouth, “your mutt. The three of us have been talkin’, and we think that you’re just the kind of person who would be perfect to replace Colter.”

She blinked, taken aback. “You…”

“You want Mae to be Overboss,” Mason said, looking just as shocked as she was.

“We do. Colter’s a piece of shit, we don’t need ‘em. So Mae kills him and takes his place.”

“I don’t wanna be Overboss,” she responded. “I like the Pack.”

“We ain’t forcin’ you outta your gang. You can do whatever the hell you want, be wherever. But you’ll also be a mediator, take care of official business if the need arises - which isn’t often.”

Mae looked up at the Pack Alpha. “Mason?”

His expression softened. “You don’t need to ask me, kitten. I think you’d be great for the position. So long as you remember that I’m still in charge of the Pack.”

“Course, and Mags and William are still in charge of their guys. And Nisha…” She looked at the others.

“We’ve had a talk about her as well,” Mags piped up. “And we’ve agreed that if you think she needs to go, then so be it. We’ll take her and her girls down, and maybe, if you think it’s a good idea, we’ll start a new gang to replace them, with Gage as the boss.”

Mae thought for a long moment. “… Okay. I’ll do it. But I want to be the one to kill Nisha.”

“Deal,” Gage smiled. “But Colter will need to go down first.”

“Fine. I’ve got the perfect way to do it.”

“Excellent,” Mags grinned. “Give us a couple of days to organize the fight against the Disciples. Mason, you’ll have to get the word around to your guys as well.”

“Got it. We done here?”

“Yeah,” Gage nodded, “we’re done.”

 

* * *

 

Mason led Mae out of the cafe and let his hand fall from the small of her back when the door closed behind them. She turned and looked up at him, question and uncertainty in her eyes, like she wanted to make sure it was all right with him that she became Overboss. She had done the same thing during the brief meeting and it tugged at his heart, knowing that his approval was the first thing she looked for.

“I’m proud of you, kitten,” he told her, and he lowered his voice to add, “I think you’ll be a great Overboss.”

She smiled. That smile that was like a beacon cutting through all the fucked up shit around them. “Thanks, big guy. And you don’t need to worry about your dominance over the Pack. I’m not interested in ruining your gig.”

He chuckled. “Appreciate it. Now, you said you had a way to get rid of…?”

“Mhm. Have to wait for him to call on me again, which will probably be soon.”

“How’re you gonna do it?”

“Wait till he’s naked. He makes me lose my guns before I get up there, so I'll hide a combat knife in my underwear.”

He nodded. “Sneaky.”

“My middle name.”

“Well, if there’s any preferred sight to die seein’, it’s you in that fancy underwear of yours.”

Gage walked out of the cafe, and Mason put his hand back on the small of Mae’s back. “Why don’t you go on ahead, kitten. I’ll catch up. Wanna have a word with Gage.”

She glanced back and forth between them before nodding. “‘Kay. See you in a sec.”

Mason waited until she was out of earshot. “Mae’s gonna do the job when Colter calls on ‘er. Make sure you’re nearby in case things go wrong, all right? I don’t want that fucker getting the upper hand on her.”

“All right, sure,” Gage agreed. “I’ll hang by near the apartment doors and listen in.”

“Good. Thanks.”

Gage shifted his weight. “Are you two…?”

“Yeah. So don’t get any funny ideas, Porter.”

He put his hands palm-side up. “No problem.”


	15. Chapter 15

Mae crawled naked and freshly showered into bed next to Mason, crossing her legs. “So, the Bottling Plant.”

Mason nodded slowly. “… There’s more Operators than there are Pack members. Plus if the plant can be fixed up, they’re more fit to run the place. I gotta spread the word tomorrow, so we’ll head there the next morning. Sound good?” She simply nodded, eyes locked with his, and he sighed. “I ain’t upset about you bein’ Overboss. Just don’t try to run my Pack and it’ll be fine. Long as you follow that, I think you’ll do great.”

Again, she nodded.

Mason tilted his head, stared at her carefully. “… C’mere.”

The corner of her lips twitching in a held back smile, she leaned forward and kissed him, his hand lifting to cradle the back of her head. She moved to straddle his lower stomach and deepen the kiss, getting an appreciative moan in response. Then both of his hands started to roam down her body.

“You ever been fucked in the ass, sweetheart?” he asked, gripping two handfuls of her backside as emphasis. Her grin answered for her, and seeing the question in his eyes she crawled off of him. 

"You got anything?" she questioned, and he leaned off the bed to dig into his nightstand drawer, taking out a jar of slick. Mae got on all fours, lowering her upper body and canting her hips up. "Go slow, okay?"

"You got it, kitten." He slicked his fingers with the lubricant and kneeled behind her, capturing her hip with his opposite hand. Mae bit her lip as he began the carefully paced task of preparing her, and as soon as the burn from three fingers ebbed to nothing but the feeling of being full she rocked back against him.

Mason took more of the lubricant and slicked his cock, then lined himself up, jaw clenching as he pushed in. "Fuck, that's tight."

"Mhm," Mae hummed, the sound wavering. She relaxed as much as she could, sighing when Mason bottomed out. 

"Fuck, I need a second," he chuckled, and Mae nodded against the mattress. But only a few moments passed before she got impatient and she rocked back again.

"Christ," Mason bit out, slowly dragging his cock back before thrusting in again, Mae's body languidly swinging forward.

"Baby," she sighed, and then the Alpha was draping himself over her, one of his arms snaking under her to tuck itself between her breasts while his hand wrapped around her throat, and his other hand went between her thighs to work her clit. He started a slow pace with deep, powerful thrusts that rhythmically swayed Mae's body back and forth.

The pleasure rolling through her was thick and slow, spiking up every time he increased pressure on her clit. " _Mason..."_

He listened to her silent plea and tightened his hold on her throat. She whimpered gratefully and took it all in - his burning body enveloping her with his head tucked over her shoulder, his expert fingers now thrusting into her in time with his cock to give her the delightful sensation of being completely and utterly _full._  She moaned his name again as she felt her orgasm slowly and lazily building.

"Harder," she choked out after a few long moments. "C'mon."

"You sure, kitten?" He curled his fingers against her sweet spot and she nodded.

"Yes. Yes, yes, yes."

He straightened up and took her hips in his massive hands, then obeyed. Mae's brows furrowed and her mouth gaped. "Fuck kitten, I ain't gonna be able to hold out," he admitted, and she simply nodded again. "Where you want me to come?"

"On me." She rocked back against him, having to put her entire body into it with Mason's sturdy grip on her. "C'mon, baby."

He hissed out a curse and then pulled out, and Mae gazed at him over her shoulder as he gave himself a few strokes to release. A coy smile twitched on her face, but then she squeaked in surprise when Mason flipped her over and covered her cunt with his mouth.

" _Shit_!" she cried out, hand lashing to grip his hair as he licked firmly along her slit to circle her clit with his tongue. Her body writhed as he continued his ministrations and she only lasted a few moments before she was coming against his tongue. 

"You are..." she breathed when he flopped down next to her, "so fucking good at that."

He chuckled and took her jaw in his grip. "C'mere, kitten." 

She leaned into the tug of his hand with a smile, tasting herself in the languid kiss that he captured her in. 

 

Yet again, they stayed awake long into the night, just talking. About their pasts, about mundane shit that seemed to be more interesting when coming from either of them, and Mason occasionally telling a stupid joke that earned him an exaggerated and insincere noise of disgust.


	16. Chapter 16

Mae’s had plenty of horrible ideas, and she had shitty impulse control. So when the Mirelurk Queen was close enough to the rooftop overlook they were now standing on, she jumped through the window opening and grabbed onto the part of its shell that hooded its face. Wasting ammo was a pain in the ass, so she’d do it the hard way.

She heard Mason shout to her, but adrenaline had her heart beat in her ears, muffling every other sound. Her grip wasn’t the best, the shell was slippery from the murky lake the creature had been resting in, so she made it quick. Hard and relentless kicks to the creature’s vulnerable skull and her boots finally squished through. The Queen staggered, then fell forward and she hurriedly jumped back to fall into the overlook again, landing hard on the floor.

 

* * *

 

Mason grabbed her by her shirt and hauled her up before she could even think to stand. 

“You must’ve lost your fuckin’ mind,” he growled, and he saw fear glint in her eyes as he forced her to tiptoe back while he walked forward, his grip on her collar keeping her slightly suspended.

“Watch it,” she warned, her voice wavering as she crashed against a table. Mason felt his anger melt away, replaced with something that resembled both relief and the fear of what could’ve happened. He gripped the back of her neck, thumb soothing over the sweat-dampened skin. His eyes darted over her face.

He’d seen her hands slipping when she was hanging on the Queen’s shell, he’d seen how close its claws were to cutting off her kicking legs and had heard it take in a breath to spew acid at her swinging body. If she hadn’t broken through its skull in the instant that she did…

He’d never felt that kind of fear before. Adrenaline filled apprehension, maybe, but not blood-freezing fear.

“I’m okay,” she told him, must’ve seen it in his expression.

“You…” his voice cracked, and he shifted his weight. Mae pulled him into a searing kiss, the Alpha relaxing and pulling her closer. When he yanked down her jumpsuit and underwear she didn’t object, just wriggled her body to help him get them from under her. His hands were everywhere as he stopped to kiss her again, still assuring himself that she was alive and well.

“Mason,” she sighed, cradling his head as he moved his lips to her neck, nipping and licking while his fingers worked her.

“Need you,” he thrummed. “Right now.” He felt her nod and in almost no time at all he was sliding into her, his hands holding her thighs against the table’s edge.

His pace was slow, thrusts deep and rolling as he focused on her hands, one sliding under the collar of his tank top, soothing over his burning back, while the other fisted in his hair. He littered her shoulder and neck with lingering kisses and bites.

“Mason,” she breathed. “Fuck, I love you.”

He froze, still buried inside her, his stomach turning and heart jumping into his throat.

“I—shit, sorry,” she laughed, nervously and breathlessly against his neck. “I didn’t—“

He cut her off with another kiss. “Don’t take it back,” he pleaded, resuming his slow and deep pace, lips hovering against hers. “Don’t you fucking dare take it back.”

She whimpered, held him tighter against her body, kept tugging at his tank top like she couldn’t get him close enough and her grasping hands gave him the assurance he needed.

“Mae,” he croaked against her neck. “Mae…”

“I mean it, Mason,” she whispered, almost like she was afraid to admit it. “I mean it.”

He felt like his heart was clenched in a warm fist, and he kissed her again. slowly, incessantly until she came with a moaning sigh. He fucked her through it, still going slow, and once she stopped pulsing around him he pulled out and came over her bare hip.

Then he fell to his knees, arms wrapped around her waist and biceps settled on her thighs. She raked her fingers through his hair as he languidly nipped and sucked at the skin over her ribcage until there were various darkened spots over her torso. 

"Hardly know what it means," he said, just above a whisper. "... 'love'. Fuckin' hate that word. But..." He looked up at her. "This is so much more than 'somethin', Mae."

She smiled, sending a wave of comforting warmth through him, and soothed her hand over his jaw. "Can we go home?"

It shouldn't have made him so happy to hear her say that, to call his territory _home_. "Yeah, kitten. We can go home."

 

* * *

 

Mae felt more relaxed than she had in ages, her body limp on Mason's bed as the Alpha kissed his way up her body, starting at the sole of her foot. When she had accidentally admitted how she felt, a shot of worry had zipped through her. If she knew it would turn out this way she wouldn't have been so afraid.

"Say it again," he mumbled against her hip, and the familiar request flooded her chest with watery sorrow, making her take his face in her hands to pull him into a firm kiss.

"I love you," she whispered.

"Why?"

She huffed out a small laugh, flopping back down and bringing him with her. "You're good to me, you're loyal, take care of your own. I like talking to you. Then there's..." She stared into his eyes, trying to find the right way to explain it. "Dunno. Feels like you just belong beside me, as cheesy as it sounds."

"I ain't never been like this with no one," Mason admitted. "Mae, I... I gotta tell ya..."

She could see how he was struggling, and she soothed her hand over his jaw. "S'okay."

He nodded, eyes darting as he thought. "... You too."

She knew what he meant, and it made tears blur her vision.

"Jesus," Mason mumbled, swiping his thumb under her eye. "You're a real crybaby, huh?" She choked out a laugh and shoved at his shoulders, and he retaliated with a kiss, smiling against her lips.

 

Colter called on her the next night.


	17. Chapter 17

It had happened so fast Mae could barely register how Colter ended up on top of her with the combat knife in his grip. 

"Stupid bitch," he snarled. "Don't need you anymore anyhow. Gonna be a letdown to loose such a good fuck toy though. Ah well." He flipped the knife in his hand then moved to press the blade to her throat, but before he could do any damage a gunshot rang out. Colter slumped off of her, flopping down onto the mattress with blood pooling under his head.

Mae scrambled off the bed and looked at Gage with wide eyes, the right-hand man standing near the apartment doors.

"If anyone asks," he sighed, "you did that."

Mae kneaded her palm with her opposite thumb. "I... Thanks."

He nodded and walked over, grabbing her jacket from the bar and tossing it to her so she could cover herself. "You okay?"

"Fine. How did you...?"

"I was hanging out by the doors just in case. It's not that I didn't think you could do it, it's just that it wasn't entirely impossible that he'd get the upper hand."

Mae sighed, stuffing her hands in her pockets. "... Mason told you to listen in, didn't he."

"... Yeah." She turned slowly on her heels. "And you should be glad he did, 'cause if I hadn't been there you'd be dead."

"I know, I know. So what now?"

"Well, now we take care of the Disciples. Mason's gang and the Operators have been told what's gonna happen, we just need to start it."

"How?"

"Just announce Colter is dead. But how do you wanna do that?"

She thought for a moment, then smiled. "Hang him in front of the balcony."

Gage grinned.

 

When Colter's body was strung up, all hell broke loose against the Disciples. Because of the surprise and numbers against them, the ladies were easily taken down with only a minimal amount of casualties to the two other gangs. Mae let them take care of the small war outside while she made a beeline for Nisha's territory.

"You!" Nisha roared, sprinting towards her as soon as the door opened. "You--!"

Mae shot both of her knees out, the woman skidding a few feet after hitting the ground. "Shouldn't have fucked with me, Nisha." She pried her helmet off and kicked her waist to turn her onto her back, then sent a laser shot through her neck to let her die choking on her own blood. Then she readied herself for the Disciples charging for her.

Not one of them had a gun, and as Mae climbed to a support beam above her she thought of how fucking stupid that was. She sat on the steel and made herself comfortable, picking them off one by one as they scurried on the ground, throwing knives that she easily dodged. Though some of them had the brains to try and climb for her, if only to suffer the same fate.

Mason appeared 10 minutes later. "Mae?"

"Up here," she called, swinging her legs back and forth. "They done out there?"

He visibly relaxed. "Yeah. The fuck you doin' up there?"

She jumped down, landing in front of him. "Why didn't you think I could take Colter down by myself?" His brows furrowed. "You had Gage listen in."

He sighed. "It ain't that I didn't think you could do it. It's just that Colter was Overboss for a reason. It was a pretty fuckin' real possibility that he could get the upper hand. And if you know that Gage was listening, then..."

She swallowed and looked away. "... Gage had to kill him. I couldn't..."

He leaned into her view. "Hey, don't sweat it. So you ain't good with knives, that don't matter. Doesn't mean you don't deserve his place."

She nodded, then smiled. "Thanks, big guy."

Mason kissed her forehead, an uncharacteristically tender gesture but one she could get used to. "So are you ready to address your people, _boss_?"

Mae laughed softly, bowing her head for a moment. "Sure. But... I think I like 'kitten' better."

He smiled and leaned down to kiss her. "Me too."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! :D
> 
> I wrote a multi-chapter fic with Mae's Kellogg and an m!sole if you wanna check it out - and if you don't dig that pairing but you like Mae, just check out the last chapter of the fic to learn a bit more about her/her past :) 
> 
> \- Ellie


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